Humble Beginnings
by Guardian of Nesh
Summary: Ash's journey takes an unexpected turn on the day he gets Pikachu when a call between Professor Oak and Professor Rowan inspires him to go to Sinnoh right away. There he meets Dawn and travels with her across Sinnoh and beyond. The path to achieving their dreams is long and hard for the pair of rookies, but great things always have humble beginnings.
1. Chapter 1: A Sinnoh Start

**Humble Beginnings**

 **Chapter 1: A Sinnoh Start**

Ash Ketchum's day had started far from how he'd planned; today was supposed to be one of the best days of his life, the day he got his first Pokémon, and he'd overslept! He'd rushed all the way over to Professor Oak's lab in his pajamas so that he could get his first Pokémon, he just hoped there was one left for him. He'd already had the displeasure of running into Gary who claimed he'd gotten the best Pokémon from Professor Oak, who happened to be Gary's grandfather. Ash didn't put much stock into that, Professor Oak didn't seem the type that would play favorites.

"So you finally decided to show up after all." The gray haired Pokémon Professor stepped out of his lab and greeted Ash. While the man's voice was kind it was clear that he was exasperated by the young boy's tardiness.

"Oh, Professor Oak, where's my Pokémon?" Ash asked.

"Your Pokémon?" Oak asked bluntly.

"Yes, I'm ready," Ash said.

"You look like you're ready for bed, not for Pokémon training. I hope you don't think you're gonna train in your pajamas." Oak said as he looked Ash over with a frown. It was plain to see that the man was _not_ impressed.

"Oh no, Professor, I got messed up this morning, and I was a little late, but believe me, I'm ready for a Pokémon," The young Trainer to be pleaded. Oak stepped wordlessly back into his lab and Ash followed assuming that it was what the older man wanted him to do. Anything further was cut off by the sound of Oak's videophone ringing.

"I have to take this," Oak said as he looked at the screen to find out who was calling. He answered and Ash could see that a man with a large white mustache was one the other end of the line. If Ash had to guess he was even older than Oak, "Ah, Professor Rowan, how are things in the Sinnoh region?" Oak's tone was jovial, this Rowan guy must have been a friend of his.

Sinnoh? He'd never heard of that place. Ash leaned in closer, now intrigued by the conversation that now involved far off places. He was going to be a Pokémon Master, and he had no doubt that this Sinnoh place had lots of cool Pokémon.

"Things are going quite well over here. Sinnoh's many unique Pokémon and legends make it the perfect place to conduct my research. Speaking of which I called to let you know I'm sending over the new Pokédex data I've gathered so you can incorporate it into yours," Rowan said.

"Thank you, I look forward to seeing what your research has uncovered, though I wish you had called a bit sooner, the new crop of Trainers is leaving Pallet today and I would have liked to have given them the most up to date Pokédex. Most of them already have." Oak said, glancing at Ash.

"Yes, well I've been quite busy preparing for new Trainers myself, otherwise it would have been ready sooner," Rowan explained.

"I understand, I appreciate the call, old friend," With that Oak ended the call and turned back to Ash. "Now I believe you said something about wanting a Pokémon young man." Oak was fiddling with a handheld machine of some kind.

"I thought about it a lot, and it took me a long time, but I finally decided to choose... Squirtle!" Ash picked up the ball, only to have it flop open and reveal that it was empty.

"Already taken by someone who was on time, " Oak said

"Oh, I wish I hadn't overslept. But now I would choose as my Pokémon... Bulbasaur! What?" This ball was also empty.

"That was also taken buy a kid who wasn't late," Oak explained.

"Oh, well that's no problem, because my Pokémon will be... Charmander." Another empty ball. This couldn't be happening. This had to be a nightmare, he was destined to start his journey to become a Pokémon Master today.

"The early bird gets the worm, or in this case, uhh, the Pokémon."

"Does that mean all the Pokémon are gone?" Ash's heart sank.

"Well, there is still one left, but I-" Oak never got to finish that sentence.

"Professor, I'll take it!" Ash's eagerness had transformed into impetuousness. Normally Ash was a bit more polite than this, but his dream was at stake here.

"I think I should warn you, there is a problem with this last one." Oak said.

"I have to have a Pokémon." It didn't matter to Ash at all what it was, he'd take a Magikarp at this point. He wanted nothing more than to start his journey and he'd deal with whatever he had to in order to live his dream.

"Well, in that case..." Oak hesitated before pressing a button on the mechanical pedestal that held the Pokéballs for the starter Pokémon. A new Pokéball rose up in the center of the other three; it looked normal except for the fact that it had a lighting bolt painted on it.

Ash grabbed the ball from the pedestal and pressed the button to open it. The room was lit in a golden hue as energy poured out of the capsule. After all the spectacle the Pokémon that came out was a little disappointing if Ash were completely honest, but at least it was his; it was just a yellow mouse with red cheeks.

"Pikachu," the Pokémon said.

"Its name is Pikachu." Professor Oak said, formally introducing the Pokémon.

"Oh, it's so cute, it's the best of all!" Finally he had his own Pokémon, this was the most amazing thing ever to ever happen to him he could already tell that he and Pikachu were going to be the best of friends. Together they would conquer the Pokémon League.

"You'll see," Oak warned. That probably should have set alarm bells off in Ash's head, but he was so thrilled to have his starter Pokémon that he barely even register what the Pokémon Professor had said, let alone begun to take it seriously.

"Oh, hi, Pikachu." Ash picked his Pokémon up to hug it. That was something perfectly natural for a beginning Trainer to do with their first Pokémon. Unfortunately for Ash, Pikachu wasn't the average starter Pokémon and was none too pleased with the friendly treatment.

"Pika... " The Pokémon muttered before unleashing untold volts from its cheeks that proceeded to course through Ash's body giving a sensation not unlike being struck by natural lightning. It was a testament to the boy's hardiness that he was still standing considering that Pikachu's evolved from had been documented knocking out Indian elephants with a touch.

It's also known as an electric mouse. It's usually shy, but can sometimes have an electrifying personality." Oak said.

"I see what you mean."

"Shocking, isn't it? Now take these, your Pokédex and Pokéballs." Oak handed the items to Ash. Unfortunately Pikachu didn't seem to appreciate the man's pun and shocked them both.

"Thank you!" Ash ground out through the pain.

"You're welcome!" Oak practically screamed through the pain **.** Once the numbness from the electric shock had passed they stepped outside. Ash was surprised to find his mother waiting for him as well as what looked like half of Pallet. "Mom?"

"Oh, Ash, I'm so proud of you! You're finally going to fulfill your dream and start your Pokémon training. But I'm, I'm going to miss you so much. Oh, my little boy! I packed your sneakers and jeans, nice clean shirts and underwear and your favorite snacks and some hot chocolate in case you want something hot, but be careful not to burn yourself! And a pair of rubber gloves to do your laundry and a new clothes line to hang it out to dry-" His mother rattled off items as she shoved them into his backpack.

"Mom, you're embarrassing me in front of all these people! Don't you know I'm a big kid now? Pokémon Trainers can take care of themselves. Besides I'm not leaving quite yet."

"I understand. Hmmm? That's your Pokémon?" His mother asked finally catching sight of Pikachu.

"Yep that's my Pokémon. With Pikachu at my side I'll get all the Pokémon in the world," Ash declared.

"I thought all Pokémon stayed inside their Pokéballs, why doesn't this one?" Delia asked.

"Huh? Oh yeah, right. Pikachu get in the ball now." He tossed the Pokéball at Pikachu, only to have the mouse Pokémon repeatedly bounce it back, much to his annoyance.

"Oh you're playing catch! You're friends already!" Delia seemed positively giddy at this.

"Uh, Sure. Pikachu and I are real pals! Right?" In this case Ash was actually glad for his mother's naivety, at least she wouldn't think he was incompetent.

"But it's a little weird," She said.

Ash felt a chill go through him, this wouldn't end well. "Weird?" Clearly offended Pikachu shocked the whole crowd.

"Those rubber gloves your mom packed will come in handy," Oak said.

"Why?"

"Rubber doesn't conduct electricity." Oak explained. Soon the crowd thinned leaving only Ash, Pikachu, Delia, and Professor Oak outside the lab. At this point all the humans were trying to keep a safe distance from Pikachu while they caught their breath.

"So I guess you'll be heading out toward Viridian City as soon as you get changed, won't you, honey? It's what your father did when he started." Ash paused, he _did_ want to see the Kanto region, but this was his home, he could always come back here later and see it. He was a Pokémon Trainer now, he wanted to travel to distant lands and thanks to Professor Oak's phone call he had just the place in mind.

"No, I think I'm going to try heading out for the Sinnoh region instead. I heard they've got a lot of cool Pokémon there that can't be found in Kanto." He said shaking his head and smiling.

"Sinnoh, but that's so far away. I know you're going to travel now that you're a Trainer, but I didn't expect you to head off to a new region so soon Ash." Delia said.

"This wouldn't have anything to do with the call I got from Professor Rowan would it, Ash? While Sinnoh does have many varieties of Pokémon that can't be found here in the Kanto region, I'm hesitant to recommend that a new Trainer travel quite so far to start their journey, especially when that Trainer has only that Pikachu with them. Perhaps it would best if you traveled more locally first. Though if you do decide to go to Sinnoh then you're incredibly lucky you were late; you're the only one who got the Pokédex upgrade Professor Rowan sent me," Oak said.

"I can travel through Kanto any time. I want to go to Sinnoh and see what kind of Pokémon live there. As for Pikachu, I'm sure I can win him over!" Ash declared.

Oak let out a tired sigh. "Well I can't stop you, you're legally allowed to do as you wish now that you have a Pokémon. The least I can do is help you prepare. I have a map of Sinnoh in my lab somewhere you can use, and I'll call ahead to let Professor Rowan know that you're heading his way; make sure to check in with him, keeping in contact with the regional professor is a good thing for any starting Trainer to do."

"Thanks, Professor Oak!" Ash said beaming.

"Don't thank me yet, Ash. By going to Sinnoh, you're leaving a lot of your safety net behind. You may soon find that going on a Pokémon journey is far more difficult than you imagined and with you being so far away your mother won't be able to provide you with any help. The next ship bound for Sinnoh leaves in a week. I suggest you prepare."

* * *

Ash was quickly discovering that sea travel could be a bit of a pain. Looking a bit green in the face he rushed to the railing and evacuated his stomach contents into the ocean below. Ash felt a strong hand pat him on the back and turned his head to find one of the sailors next to him.

"First time on a boat, kid?" The sailor asked.

"Yeah, I grew up in Pallet my whole life. I'm just starting my Pokémon journey. I'm Ash Ketchum." Ash extended a hand to the man. The sailor accepted the handshake giving Ash a good look at how calloused the man's hands were.

"Name's Curtis," The man grunted. "Pallet, ain't that Professor Oak's neck of the woods? What are you doin' with a Pikachu if you live there? A parent give it to ya, or are ya just rich enough to afford a Pokémon on your own?"

"No, nothing like that, I overslept and missed the starters being given out. Pikachu was all that was left and I'm starting to see why." Ash said. Pikachu's attitude had made him the butt of many jokes so far on this trip, Curtis was the first sailor on the boat not to make some sort of jab at him. He knew the men didn't mean any harm though so he'd let the jokes pass.

"Yeah that Pikachu of yours is a bit of a handful." Curtis bellowed out a laugh. "So that's how you ended up with that thing as a starter huh? Yeah, I figured a Pallet kid would have Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle, that's why I was confused. I mean you do know why the regional professors give out starter Pokémon, don'tcha, Ash?"

Ash shook his head. "I never really thought about it," He admitted.

"Well ya see, Pokémon are expensive, most people have their first Pokémon gifted to 'em by a family member, or if they're really lucky they're rich enough to buy one, so most people don't start off with a regional starter Pokémon. Heck, even I didn't, but for a different reason; I always knew I wanted to be a sailor and in certain professions having a certain Pokémon is seen as a rite of passage of sorts. In the case of a sailor like me it's usually a Water-type, or a Machop that we start off with. The three starter Pokémon are given to kids who want to become Trainers, but can't get their first Pokémon any other way; the bonus is they're generally easy to raise," Curtis explained.

Ash nodded, that made sense. "My Pikachu is anything but easy to raise. I get the feeling he really doesn't like me; I'm not sure what to do, Curtis."

"Some Pokémon are just like that, real spitfires. Here's some advice kid: Don't let it get to ya. That Pikachu of yours is real stubborn, there ain't no denyin' that. The trick is to just keep tryin' to win it over, 'cause once ya do, you'll never have a Pokémon more loyal. It's a bit like taming a wild Rapidash, ya gotta be firm, but gentle and understanding. Once you win that Pikachu's trust you'll never find a better partner."

"And how exactly do I win Pikachu over? He doesn't seem to want anything to do with me. I'm starting to wish I'd gotten a different Pokémon. If Pikachu doesn't start listening to me my journey isn't going to get anywhere." Ash mused.

"I can't help ya there, kid, every Pokémon is different. Just remember that respect is earned, not taken. You're a Kanto kid, why are ya headin' to Sinnoh?"

"I heard about all the cool Pokémon in the Sinnoh region and wanted to see them for myself."

"Yeah Sinnoh's amazin', Ash, one of the most beautiful regions in the world, with many amazin' Pokémon, ya made a great choice goin' there. Say where is Pikachu?"

"Back in my cabin, he really doesn't like being around me."

"Well you might want to go get him. We'll be coming up on Sandgem Town any minute now." Curtis said.

* * *

Dawn Berlitz had barely caught her breath by the time she got back to Professor Rowan's lab with Piplup. This little guy had caused a lot of trouble, fighting with Chimchar and causing the two Sinnoh starters to run off. Dawn had elected to go and try to find the two as one of them could be her first Pokémon.

The experience had not been a pleasant one. She and Piplup and nearly been eaten by a group of angry Ariados, but luckily with a little teamwork they'd manged to escape and Chimchar had been found by the lab assistants; not an ideal start to her journey, but as much as Dawn liked to tell people there was no need to worry things rarely worked out as planned for her. All that was left now was for Dawn to choose her starter.

"Now it's time for you to pick your starter Pokémon. These are three that are available to first time Trainers in the Sinnoh region: the Fire-type Chimchar, the Water-type Piplup, and the Grass-type Turtwig," Professor Rowan said. "Do you know which one you want?"

"Yes sir, I do. Piplup!" Dawn watched poor Chimchar face plant as he was sure that Dawn would choose him, she looked Piplup in the eye and spoke, "Piplup we've already been through an awful lot; we're already a team."

"You'll need Piplup's Pokéball." Professor Rowan handed Dawn the ball and she recalled Piplup. Before anything else could happen the door the lab opened revealing a boy her age wearing a blue jacket and a baseball cap. Oddly he was wearing rubber gloves and was dragging a Pikachu behind him... was it tied up in a clothesline?

"This is Professor Rowan's laboratory right? I'm Ash Ketchum from the Kanto region. Professor Oak told me to stop by here before I started my journey. I really hope I'm not in the wrong place," The boy, Ash said.

"Yes, this is my laboratory, Oak said you'd be stopping by. I can see why he told me to watch out for you." Rowan seemed as unimpressed with the boy as she was. As far as she could tell Ash couldn't even figure out how to use a Pokéball, that didn't exactly inspire confidence about his abilities.

Ash finally caught on to the fact that Professor Rowan was staring at Pikachu and the makeshift leash. "Yeah, sorry about that, this Pikachu is kind of a handful; he refuses to go into his Pokéball and doesn't seem to like me very much. I'm doing what I can to keep it under control." Ash scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.

"I see," Rowan's frown showed that the man was still less than pleased with this development, "Ash, this is Dawn, she just starting out on her journey, just like you. If I may make a recommendation, why don't you two travel together? Since you're both beginners, you'll be safer that way."

Dawn had no real desire to travel with Ash, he seemed like he'd be more a hindrance than anything else, but one stern look from the Professor told her that he would have no argument. If she had to guess this arrangement was more for Ash's sake than her own. After all, if Ash couldn't get Pikachu to obey him he was likely to get mauled by a wild Pokémon and Dawn didn't need a death on her conscience.

"Alright," Dawn said with a nod.

"Yeah, sounds like fun!" Dawn would say one thing for Ash, he certainly was eager. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad, but she still had some serious reluctance about this.

"Anything can happen on your journey, so if you two need anything feel free to call," Rowan said.

With that done Ash and Dawn set off toward Jubilife City, it wasn't like there was anywhere else to go. Dawn let Piplup out of his Pokéball. "You know, Piplup, I'm really psyched, but I'm starting to wonder what a beginning Pokémon Trainer like me does first," She said. Piplup looked up at her. "I know let's catch us some Pokémon."

"Who's that Pokémon?" Ash asked pulling out his Pokédex.

"Piplup, the Penguin Pokémon. Although not the most sure-footed, it is proud nonetheless, getting right back up after a fall with head held high." The device narrated. Piplup seemed embarrassed about what the entry said about his species. Pikachu laughed at the entry causing Piplup to chirp angrily at him. The two Trainers kept their Pokémon apart.

The group kept walking until they saw a Pokémon in the grass. It was one that Dawn recognized on sight. It was _very_ popular on the Contest circuit after all. "A Buneary I'm going to catch it!" She said trembling with excitement She then turned to Piplup. "The best way to catch a Pokémon is to battle it with another Pokémon. Are you ready, Piplup?" The Water-type Pokémon nodded as Dawn pulled out her Pokédex and scanned Buneary.

"Buneary, the Rabbit Pokémon. By quickly extending its rolled-up ears, it can launch a powerful attack against its enemies." The device said.

"We need to watch out for those ears," Dawn mused. "Piplup, use Bubble Beam!" Her starter fired a concentrated stream of bubbles at the wild Buneary who jumped out of the way with ease and landed behind Piplup. "It's fast! Piplup use Peck, Buneary's behind you!"

Piplup turned with a glowing beak and rushed toward the wild Rabbit Pokémon. Buneary once again dodged easily only this time it stuck at Piplup with one of its ears stunning the little penguin. Buneary quickly hopped away.

Dawn rushed over to see if Piplup was okay, but the sound of Pikachu's hysterical laughter cut into the moment. Piplup quickly shook off the stun and fired a Bubble Beam at Pikachu who couldn't dodge because it was still tied up in a clothesline.

"Make Piplup apologize right now!" Ash demanded.

"Make Piplup apologize? Pikachu started it," Dawn shot back.

"Watching that Buneary beat you _was_ kind of funny," Ash said. That was the wrong thing to say. Dawn felt herself flush with anger.

"Well at least Piplup listens to me and I don't have to drag him around on a leash!" She felt remorse immediately as she watched Ash recoil like he'd been slapped.

"I'll show you. I don't need this." Ash quickly took off his rubber gloves and untied Pikachu. "That's better isn't it, Pikachu? We're going to be best friends." Ash smiled at his starter. Pikachu's response was to shock the entire group.

"Ash, please just put that thing back in its Pokéball before it kills us." Dawn pleaded.

"I already told you I can't, Dawn. He just won't go back. If I could I wouldn't have been dragging him around like that."

"Show me," Dawn said. She barely resisted the urge to slap her forehead in embarrassment for the poor boy as he tossed the Pokéball at Pikachu only to have it bounced right back to him. He really didn't know much at all about being a Pokémon Trainer at all did he? I mean she was a rookie herself and had a lot to learn, but apparently Kanto was very lax in its Pokémon Trainer licensing courses.

"That's not how you return a Pokémon, Ash. Here, let me show you." Dawn held out her Pokéball and pressed the button that shot the red beam out of the ball that made the Pokémon it belonged to go back inside. Piplup returned with no fuss.

"Oh so _that's_ what that button is for!" Ash said. He quickly did as Dawn had shown him and returned Pikachu to his Pokéball. He then turned to Dawn. "Thanks Dawn. Hey is Piplup going to be okay? Pikachu's attacks hurt."

"Yeah, Piplup's tough he'll be fine. That Pikachu of yours really is a handful huh?"

"Yeah, I'm not sure how I'm going to be a Pokémon Trainer when my only Pokémon hates me. It's going to make catching other Pokémon pretty difficult."

"No need to worry, Ash, Piplup and I will help you catch a Pokemon."

"You'd really do that for me, Dawn?" Ash seemed a bit shocked.

"Consider it an apology for the mean stuff I said," Dawn explained.

"Don't worry about it, I wasn't exactly being nice either."

* * *

Ash kept staring at Pikachu's Pokéball as he and Dawn walked through a wooded area on their way to Jubilife City, Dawn walked her bike alongside her because he didn't have one. The ball itself was perfectly normal save for a yellow lightning bolt on the red portion. Of course to him it meant much more. Pikachu was his first Pokémon, the one that was meant to accompany him all through his journey. Yet Pikachu wanted nothing to do with him; it seemed like a bit of a bad omen for his dream of becoming a Pokémon Master. He was shook out of his thoughts by Dawn's voice.

"Hey, Ash, do you know what a Pokémon Contest is? My dream is to become a Top Coordinator like my mom," She said.

Ash blinked confused. He'd never heard of a Pokémon Contest before. Then again Sinnoh was a long way from Kanto. "Pokémon Contest, is that what they call the Pokémon League here in Sinnoh?" It was a shot in the dark, he just hoped he was right and didn't look like a total idiot. Dawn had already had to teach him how to get a Pokémon back in its Pokéball.

"No, a Pokémon Contest is something very different from the League. It involves a Trainer showing off the beauty of their Pokémon and their moves. They're holding one in Jubilife City soon so I need to catch and train as many Pokémon as I can before we get there so I'm ready."

"Sounds kind of dumb if you ask me. Pokémon are meant to be strong and tough, not pretty. League battles show true mastery of Pokémon," Ash replied.

"There is battling in Contests, and some amazing strategies and combinations," Dawn said with annoyance in her voice.

"If you say so," Ash said with a shrug.

"Well why don't you watch some and see what you think?" Dawn suggested.

"Sure, why not?" Ash agreed. The conversation stopped as they heard a rustling in the trees and they looked up to find a black Pokémon covered in leaves hanging on a branch.

"Oh it's a Burmy! That'll be a good Pokémon for you, Ash," Dawn said. "Come on out, Piplup." Dawn tossed Piplup's Pokéball and the small penguin Pokémon appeared.

Ash pulled out his Pokédex. "Burmy, the Bag Worm Pokémon. To protect itself from the cold wind, Burmy uses leaves and branches to make a cloak around itself, " The mechanical male voice of Dexter said.

"Catching that cutie should be a peace of cake. Piplup, use Bubble Beam!" Dawn ordered. Piplup followed the order and fired a stream of bubbles at the Burmy knocking it off the tree.

As Burmy recollected the trees and branches that made up its cloak as Piplup's attack had knocked them off Ash pulled out a Pokéball and threw it at the distracted Pokémon. The ball struck its target and opened up converting the Pokémon into energy before closing again. It shook once, twice, three times before making the pinging noise that indicated that Burmy had been caught. Ash rushed over and picked up the Pokéball.

"I caught a Burmy!" He said excitedly. "Thanks for your help, Dawn, Piplup."

"Not a problem, Ash." Dawn offered her had for a high five which Ash happily gave her. "Now you have a Pokémon that will actually listen to you unlike Pikachu so you can catch and train your own Pokémon now. You're one step closer to being a Pokémon Master."

Ash turned away from Dawn so she wouldn't see his smile falter. He hooked Burmy's Pokéball on to his belt and once again began staring at Pikachu's. He was grateful for what Dawn and Piplup had done for him. They weren't under any obligation to help him out and he was sure Burmy would be a great Pokémon. At the same time though Pikachu was his starter.

He _had_ to get Pikachu to trust him somehow. He had no idea where to even start with the stubborn Mouse Pokémon, but that didn't mean he'd stop trying. Right now all he could do was take thing one step at a time and see where the journey took him.

* * *

So here we are at the start of a new Pearlshipping fic; the romance is going to be a slow burn because they're young, but it will happen. First of all thank you for taking the time to read this. Ash going to Sinnoh right away has already caused some big changes as you can see and it will continue to do so. I know this first chapter is a bit paint by numbers, but it kind of needed to be in order to set everything up. It will get better in later chapters.

Please leave a review. Feel free to speculate on how things will change in various ways, just know I won't be giving out any major spoilers via PM. I hope you enjoyed this and will come back for the next chapter.


	2. Chapter 2: A Day of Firsts

**Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.**

 ** **Humble Beginnings****

 ** **Chapter 2: A Day of Firsts****

Ash sat on a rock watching as Dawn cooked them something to eat for lunch. That wasn't a skill he'd picked up back in Kanto and he was really starting to wish he had. Dawn's cooking probably wouldn't be as good as his mother's, but it couldn't be much worse than the slop he was served on the ship on the way to Sinnoh and he was starving anyway. "How long until the food's ready, Dawn?" Ash whined. The question was followed by a comically loud grumbling of the boy's stomach.

"I told you it'll be done soon, you need to be patient, Ash." Dawn waved the wooden spoon she was using toward him in a way that one might associate with a mother admonishing a child. The smile on her face said that she wasn't really put out by Ash's antics though.

"But I'm so hungry!" Ash moaned.

"Learn to cook your own food and you wouldn't have to wait on me," she said. Dawn brought the food over. It wasn't anything particularly fancy, just some instant noodles spiced up with some herbs and berries they'd found. Ash's noodles heavily featured Liechi berries, a nice combination of sweet and spicy that suited his tastes. Dawn's was just as sweet but not spicy, Salac berries being her choice. The difference in flavor profile meant next to nothing to Ash who dug into his meal with gusto.

"This is so good." He didn't really bother to swallow his food before speaking and needless to say his traveling companion wasn't exactly impressed with the resulting mess.

"Ash, don't talk with your mouth full," she chided.

Ash swallowed quickly. "Sorry. You sound like my mom, Dawn," he said with a small smile.

"She's a smart woman, it's good to use your manners in front of a lady."

"We should probably feed our Pokémon too," Ash said.

"Yeah, you're right." Dawn said as she pulled out the dishes and Pokémon food. "Come on out, Piplup!" With a popping noise and shimmering white energy Piplup appeared.

The Water-type Pokémon was quick to figure out why he'd been let out of his Pokéball and went right for the food. His table manners were similar to Ash's which caused the boy to chuckle a bit when he saw the look on Dawn's face.

Ash pulled the two Pokéballs off of his belt and stared at them. Letting Burmy out wouldn't be a problem, at least he hoped not, could anyone's luck really be __that__ bad? Pikachu however concerned him greatly. His starter Pokémon had given him no end of trouble and part of him thought it would be better to just leave him in the Pokéball. Still Pikachu had to eat... "Pikachu, Burmy, it's chow time!" He called as he let his Pokémon out.

Burmy was quite __affectionate__ ,climbing all over Ash as soon as it was out of its Pokéball. The scratching of leaves on his skin was far from a comfortable sensation, but he'd take it over an electric shock any day.

"It looks like Burmy likes you. We made a good choice when we caught that Pokémon for you." Dawn was positively beaming.

"Yeah, I really owe you one for that." Ash said as he gently removed Burmy from his person and pointed it toward the food. That got the Pokemon's attention. Burmy hadn't eaten since it had been caught so it was pretty hungry no doubt.

"No need to worry, Ash, you would have done the same thing for me." Dawn waved off the gratitude as if it were nothing. Ash thought about it for a moment and concluded that his new friend was right so there was no point in dwelling on it.

Ash pulled out his Pokédex and pointed it at Burmy. He figured he should get to know his new Pokémon better before using it for anything. The first thing he checked was Burmy's moves. It knew Tackle, Bug Bite, and Protect. Not a bad start. Ash had watched enough League battles to know that for a first stage Bug-type that wasn't bad at all. Then something else on the readout caught his eye. "Hey, my Burmy's a girl!"

"Is that a problem, Ash?" Dawn asked. He could almost see the wheels turning in her head, trying to see if she needed to reevaluate him again.

"Nah, it's not a problem at all. Having an issue with a Pokémon's gender for no good reason is kind of silly." Ash assured her. That seemed to be the right answer as Dawn relaxed immediately.

Burmy however had gotten herself into some trouble. She'd tried to introduce herself to Pikachu who really wanted nothing to do with her at all. She'd brought the food dish that had been put out for Pikachu over to the spot where the Mouse Pokémon was secluding himself in a gesture of friendship. Said gesture was met with a smack to the face from Pikachu's tail when the Bagworm Pokémon kept trying.

Well Ash wasn't having any of that so he rushed over and scooped up Burmy in his arms. From what he could tell she was fine physically, it was more her feelings that got hurt than anything else; having gotten the message Burmy returned to her own bowl of food. "Pikachu, that wasn't nice, you need to apologize to Burmy right now," Ash demanded.

"Pi." Pikachu turned away from Ash and it didn't take a genius to figure out what he'd said.

Ash growled in frustration. "You don't have to like me, I can deal with that, but that doesn't give you a right to be mean to Burmy. She just wants to be your friend Pikachu. If you're going to keep behaving like this I'll just put you back into your Pokéball without food."

It seemed that was the wrong thing to say as Pikachu whirled around and hit Ash with a powerful Thundershock attack. The Electric-type then took a hold of the bowl of food with its mouth and in a impressive display of dexterity scurried up a tree and settled on a particularly sturdy limb to eat his food.

Dawn rushed over to Ash's side and helped him stand back up. "Are you alright?" She asked, concern evident on her face.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I got used to Pikachu's shocks on the way here from Kanto, though I have to say that was one of the nastier ones I've felt. I guess I shouldn't try to get between Pikachu and his food huh?" Ash made a noise somewhere between a groan and a laugh.

"You know you don't have to keep Pikachu right? You can release Pokémon, and from what I've seen it might be better for your health if you just released that one. The human body isn't built for repeated electric shocks," Dawn mused.

Ash shook his head. "Pikachu doesn't respect me. I don't know why but he doesn't, hasn't since the moment we met. If I give up on him now he never will. What kind of Pokémon Trainer would I be if I threw away any Pokémon that was even slightly difficult to deal with. I like Pikachu even if he doesn't like me and when I finally do win him over and earn his respect I'll have a strong and loyal partner by my side." A lot of that was just paraphrasing the advice Curtis had given him on the boat, but Ash had really taken it to heart.

"You're as stubborn as Pikachu, how'd I end up babysitting you two?" Dawn asked, even Ash could tell that the question was rhetorical and thus didn't answer.

For his part Pikachu didn't seem all that impressed with Ash's declaration. The Pokémon responded by rolling his eyes and chucking his empty food dish on the ground. It was going to be a long road to win that one over it seemed.

"Hey, Dawn, could you do me a favor? We both have Pokémon that will listen to us now so I was wondering if we could have a battle. You know Piplup versus Burmy, if you're up for it." Ash said.

"You want to battle me? Why, I want to be a Coordinator, not a League battler like you." Dawn was like a Stantler in headlights at the suggestion of battling him.

"Contest battles aren't that different from League battles are they? I'm just really excited to have my first battle, it's a big part of being a Trainer after all. You're here and we both need practice so I figured why not?" He explained.

Dawn still looked hesitant. "Well okay, I guess it can't hurt." She said at length. The two Trainers stood at opposite ends of the clearing they were in with their Pokémon in front of them. "Shouldn't you put Pikachu back in its Pokéball?"

"Nah, I think seeing this battle might help him come around," Ash said.

"Don't expect me to hold back, if you want to impress Pikachu you'll have to work for it," Dawn replied with a teasing wink.

"I wouldn't want anything less. Now who's going to have the first move?"

"Ash you really need to remember your manners, ladies first, we just talked about this." Dawn admonished with a teasing smile; if Ash was reading it right she wasn't being serious, but he didn't see any harm in letting her have the first move. "Go Piplup, use Peck!" Piplup charged toward Burmy, his beak glowing with with Flying-type power.

There were many aspects of being a Pokémon Trainer that Ash wasn't very good at at this stage in his journey, type match ups was not one of those things. Being an avid watcher of the Pokémon League, specifically Kanto's local League the Indigo Plateau, he had a good grasp about what types of moves were super effective against the various types of Pokémon. So he knew that a Flying-type attack like Peck would be bad news for his Bug-type Burmy if it hit. Of course he had no intention of letting his Pokémon get hit.

"Burmy, dodge it!" Ash called. Unfortunately his Pokémon was just a bit too slow to avoid Piplup's attack and was repeatedly struck by the little penguin's beak. It looked like it hurt quite a bit, although that was to be expected when taking a super effective attack. "Knock Piplup away with Tackle!"

Burmy flung her body at Piplup with all the force she could muster. While Burmy wasn't quite as heavy as Piplup the Water-type wasn't exactly known for being surefooted so the attack had its desired effect. Piplup went flying and landed in front of Dawn giving Burmy some breathing space, at least for the moment.

"Are you okay, Piplup?" The blue-haired Trainer looked at her Pokémon with some concern. For his part Piplup got up quickly enough, though Burmy's attack had clearly hurt him. No one could ever say that the Sinnoh starter wasn't a tough little Pokémon. "Use Bubble Beam!"

Piplup followed the command, letting out a concentrated stream of bubbles toward his opponent. They were fast, Ash didn't have time to tell Burmy to dodge before they hit. Just like the day before when Dawn and Piplup helped Ash catch Burmy the Bubble Beam knocked off Burmy's cloak of leaves, sending the Bug-type Pokémon scrambling to put it back together.

Ash growled in frustration, they didn't need this right now. "Your cloak isn't important right now! You're a sitting Ducklett out there, Burmy, focus on the battle!" Burmy wasn't listening though, she seemed to care more about her cloak than anything else right now. Ash's heart sank, he knew that Dawn wouldn't pass up this opportunity, he certainly wouldn't had the situation been reversed.

The smirk on Dawn's face told Ash that she was enjoying this, and if he were to be completely honest he was too, despite the fact that he was losing. Sure, he would much rather be winning the battle but what did that matter right now? He was a real Pokémon Trainer having a real Pokémon battle, just like he'd always dreamed; right now, at this moment, that was all that mattered.

"Use Peck!" Dawn called. Of course she'd called for that attack, it was the best one she had to battle Burmy with and the Bug-type Pokémon was still busy putting her cloak back together. Ash knew he had ti do something, but what? Piplup was barreling down on Burmy as fast as his legs could carry him, beak glowing a ready to deliver another painful Flying-type attack. That was when it hit him.

"Burmy, use Protect!" It was gamble. The move would work, that wasn't the problem. No, the question was whether Burmy would use it or just keep scrambling for her cloak. Thankfully it seemed the pain of Piplup's last Peck had left an impression on her, she stopped gathering leaves long enough to project a green spherical force field around herself that blocked Piplup's attack.

Ash smiled as he saw that Burmy had finished putting her cloak back together while under the shield of Protect. They were back in this battle now and Piplup was nice and close too; that would make their next move almost impossible to avoid. "Use Bug Bite!"

Burmy's teeth began to glow white and the grew slightly longer as she prepared to unleash her attack. Bug Bite would pack a little bit of an extra punch because both it and Burmy were Bug-type, thus it got the same type attack bonus or STAB. It wouldn't be quite as powerful as Piplup's Bubble Beam which got a STAB boost as well, but it would still do damage.

The best part was that with Piplup so close he really didn't have a chance to react. Burmy sank her fangs into Piplup's fin and clamped down. Piplup's reaction was to be expected, he cried out in pain and began flailing around trying to shake Burmy off of his flipper. Unfortunately for him the Bug-type didn't seem like she had any intention of letting go, and that suited Ash just fine.

"Calm down, Piplup!" Dawn said,trying to soothe he Pokémon, likely so she could give him some kind of strategy to get Burmy off. The Water-type wasn't listening though. "Use Peck!" That got the little penguin's attention and his beak once again began to glow.

This wasn't good, he didn't know how much more punishment Burmy could take. "Burmy, get out of there!" He'd given the order just in time, Burmy disengaged and hopped away from her opponent. This battle wasn't over quite yet.

"Piplup, Bubble Beam!" It seemed Dawn wasn't going to give them any respite in this battle, good he didn't really want her to. Still Ash had a decision to make that could change the flow of battle. Did he tell Burmy to try and dodge Bubble Beam and risk getting her cloak knocked off again or should he tell her to use Protect?

Protect had a chance to fail if used consecutively, but did Dawn know that? If she did then he was leaving himself open for a follow up attack. Of course if Bubble Beam hit Burmy would be in just as much trouble, if not more. "Use Protect!" Ash ordered finally. The stream of bubbles from Piplup's Bubble Beam smashed against the force field of Protect and kicked up a series of small explosions but Burmy remained unharmed by the attack.

"Finish this up with Peck Piplup!" Dawn called before the smoke had even cleared. It appeared that she __did__ know about Protect's flaw. Well that was inconvenient. He'd have to do something to turn this around. Then an idea struck him, it was crazy, but it just might work. Every attack he'd seen from Piplup had come from his mouth...

"Burmy, use Bug Bite on the top of Piplup's head!" Ash ordered. The smoke from the earlier explosions had mostly cleared now so both Ash and Dawn could see Burmy leap up and latch on to Piplup's head with her elongated glowing fangs, and just like before she had no intention of letting go.

"Biting the top of Piplup's head, what kind of move is that?" Dawn demanded.

"A smart one, you can't hit her with Peck or Bubble Beam now," Ash replied, smirking as he did so.

"You think you're so clever don't you, Ash? Well you don't know everything about Piplup." Dawn was clearly flustered by this turn of events. "Use Bide, Piplup!"

Piplup hunkered down and began to convert the damage he was taking into power for Bide. Normally, this wouldn't be a bad move, but in her frustration it seemed that Dawn had forgotten that Burmy knew Protect. Bide was a powerful move to be sure, but like Protect it had a drawback; while Protect had a chance to fail if you used it more than once in a row, bide had a couple flaws. Namely that for one you had to be taking damage for it to work and it also took time to charge. Of course it exchange it dealt back twice the damage you'd taken during the changing period. So depending on the situation it was worth the trade-off.

Piplup began to glow white with energy, the telltale sign that Bide was gathering energy. Ash waited until the very last second before calling his order.

"Burmy, Protect, now!" Burmy once again called the green spherical shield of Protect just as Piplup released the Bide energy. The white torrent of Bide energy hit the shield. The energy having hit a wall caused a large explosion. When the smoke cleared Piplup was unconscious with swirls in his eyes. That Bide energy had to go somewhere once it was blocked by Protect so it rebounded on to Piplup.

Dawn rushed over and scooped up her starter in her arms. "Oh, Piplup, I'm so sorry. It's my fault we lost. I forgot about Protect." She said.

"Don't feel bad, you did really good, Dawn, you almost had me." Ash comforted.

"Thanks, you were really good too. Using Bug Bite on Piplup's head was a really clever move, Ash, you'd make a good Pokémon Coordinator." Once she was sure that Piplup was alright Dawn got up and shared a high five with Ash, a mutual congratulations for the good battle they'd shared.

Ash turned his attention back to Pikachu in the tree. His starter still seemed completely unimpressed by the battle. It seemed Pikachu wouldn't be listening to him any time soon, but he was going to keep trying, no matter how frustrating his starter was.

* * *

That night Dawn woke up and sighed. She really needed to use the bathroom, going outside wasn't something that was comfortable or desirable to her. Still it was better than the alternative. She grabbed Piplup's Pokéball, put on her beanie because it was cold outside, and unzipped the door of her tent. She stepped out and glanced over to where Ash was sleeping with nothing but a sleeping bag, at least he looked comfortable. It wasn't something she would pick if she had a choice, but more power to him.

Dawn quickly found a spot to do her business and settled in. Just as she was finishing up she heard a rustling in the grass nearby. She turned to look, only to find a Pokémon rushing toward her. It took her a moment to register what it was, but when she did Dawn realized it was a Shinx. She scrambled for Piplup's Pokéball, but she didn't expect what the Shinx did next. Instead of attacking her it jumped up and snatched the beanie from her head. As the Shinx rushed off Dawn finally got off the scream that had been building since the Shinx had rushed her.

A groggy looking Ash came running to where she was. "What's wrong, Dawn; I heard you scream."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you, Ash. I know this will probably sound silly to you but a Shinx stole my hat. I need to get it back. It's my favorite." Dawn was grateful it was dark so that her new friend wouldn't see the embarrassed blush on her face.

"Nah, I don't find it silly at all. That hat I wear is pretty rare. It's a Pokémon League Expo hat. The Indigo League, that's Kanto's Pokémon League, only made a hundred of them. I had to send in like a million postcards to win it. So if some Pokémon took it I would freak out too." Ash said.

"Thanks for understanding, Ash. Now let's go find that Shinx!" Dawn didn't wait for a response. Luckily Ash was able to keep up with her.

"I'm all for finding your hat Dawn, but you know I'm not from Sinnoh. We don't have Shinx back in Kanto. I don't even know what it is we're looking for." Ash said.,

"Just check your Pokédex." She replied. Ash must have pulled the device out because she soon heard the mechanical voice of Dexter.

"Shinx, the Flash Pokémon. When it senses danger, the hairs on its body light up and it runs away, leaving its opponent dazed."

"An Electric-type, not exactly a good match for Piplup. What are you going to do, Dawn? You'll probably need to battle Shinx to get your hat back. It won't be easy."

"I'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Right now we just need to find that Shinx." Dawn said. It took some time to find Shinx, the little Pokémon was fast and it was dark, but Dawn Berlitz wasn't one to give up that easily.

Finally, they found Shinx sleeping in a clearing using Dawn's hat as a pillow. She had to admit that it was cute, but she'd never say that out loud, not when her favorite hat was involved. Now she just had to figure out how to get it back.

"Shinx just wanted a pillow. I don't think it meant any harm." Ash whispered.

"Yeah, well she better not have gotten any grass stains on my beanie." Dawn huffed. She could tell that this particular Shinx was female because of its blue hind feet and the slightly shorter tuft of hair on her head compared to a male Shinx. Gender differences in Pokémon was a subject covered on the Sinnoh Trainer's license test.

She pulled out Piplup's Pokéball. "Go, Piplup, use Bubble Beam!" She called throwing the ball. The Pokéball opened with a loud pop and let Piplup out in a cascade of white energy. The sound of Piplup being sent out was loud enough to wake the Shinx but the poor Pokémon was too drowsy to react to the torrent of bubbles coming her way. Shinx was hit head on by the Bubble Beam and sent flying.

The little Pokémon being cat-like as she was landed on her feet with little trouble. Although being soaked with water seemed to annoy her more than anything else. She shook off the water and glared at the two Trainers in front of her.

"Uh, Dawn, I think you made her mad..." Ash was slowly stepping backward. Dawn couldn't really blame him for that reaction she supposed; after all if she had been repeatedly shocked by Pikachu she'd be wary of angry Electric-types too. Still that wasn't going to stop her. Not when her hat was on the line, her hat and her first Pokémon capture. Ash could leave if he wanted, Dawn wouldn't hold it against him, he'd already helped her find Shinx, but she wasn't going anywhere until she had her hat back and she'd captured a new Pokémon.

"Good, that means I got her attention." Dawn said. "Shinx, you took my hat. I won't let you get away with that. I challenge you to a battle!"

Shinx obviously understood what Dawn wanted as she covered her body in electricity and charged toward Piplup using her Spark attack. As the Flash Pokémon ran droplets of water flew off her still wet fur. The light from the electricity on her body combined with the refraction from the water droplets bathed the clearing in rainbow light. It was quite the breathtaking display. So breathtaking in fact that Dawn was momentarily mesmerized and failed to give Piplup any orders. Piplup was sent flying into Dawn's arms, wincing in pain from the Electric-type attack.

"Dawn, what are you doing? Focus on the battle." Ash said.

"R-Right," Dawn said as she placed Piplup back on the ground. After that beautiful display she had to catch this Shinx and find a way to replicate it. It was what any good Pokémon Coordinator would do and she was going to be a Top Coordinator.

From across the clearing she could see Shinx's eyes glowing blue. She was using Leer to lower Piplup's defense. Spark would do even more damage now and it seemed like Shinx was intent on doing just that as she once again charged toward Dawn's starter bathed in electricity.

"Dodge it!" Dawn called. Piplup did his best to get out of the way of the Flash Pokémon but Piplup was not a Pokémon known for its balance; Piplup lost its balance and fell flat on his face. The Sinnoh starter surely would have been it by the super effective attack if Shinx hadn't stumbled slightly on a puddle of water giving Piplup just enough time to roll out of the way.

Dawn was nothing if not a quick learner and her battle with Ash had shown her that unorthodox methods could be effective. She was beginning to form a plan, only time would tell if it would work or if she'd gone crazy. "Piplup, use Bubble Beam on the whole clearing!" Piplup looked momentarily confused but to his credit he followed through on the orders he was given and sprayed the whole area with Bubble Beam. The Ariados incident had built a lot of trust between him and Dawn.

The ground was now soaked with water, just as Dawn had wanted; it also did some more damage to Shinx, but that was just a fringe benefit. Shinx was coming around for another Spark, but the slippery ground was slowing her down. "Dodge it, Piplup and hit her with Bubble Beam" While Shinx found slippery ground to be a hindrance, Piplup being Penguin-like was built to live and move on ice and in water so he was much more in his element now.

Piplup was now able to gracefully dodge the oncoming attack causing Shinx to crash into a tree headfirst, no doubt rattling the little Pokémon, getting blasted with another Bubble Beam probably didn't help matters much.

"Dawn, you might want to throw a Pokéball now," Ash said.

Dawn nodded and threw the ball. The capsule opened up and converted Shinx into energy before closing. The Pokéball shook once, twice, three times and then finally with an echoing ping signaled that the Pokémon had been caught. Dawn rushed over and grabbed the Pokéball, as well as her beanie which was still laying on the ground.

The beanie was soaked, but she could dry it out. "I caught a Shinx!" She said beaming, at first she'd been apprehensive about the way her journey was going, but things were looking up.

* * *

So here's chapter two I hope you all enjoyed it. Now to address some things. I know some of you are unhappy with the way somethings have gone in this fic. Namely the fact that I omitted the Spearow incident and made Pikachu stay his rebellious episode 1 self. That's just a result of Ash going to Sinnoh, nothing more. I don't hate Ash and I have every intention of having him win over Pikachu in due time. Please just be patient with me and remember that Ash is starting from zero here he's not going to become an amazing Trainer overnight.

Another complaint is that I gave Ash Burmy, which some people see as not a very good first Pokémon. Let me just remind you that Ash's first capture in canon was a Caterpie, and Burmy and its evolution are all around better than the Caterpie line; I doubt anyone would have complained if he caught a Caterpie. Expect Ash and Dawn's teams in this fic to be different than canon. You won't know what they'll catch until I have them catch it so have fun guessing. At any rate please leave a review.


	3. Chapter 3: Big City Blues

**Humble Beginnings**

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

 **Chapter 3: Big City Blues**

As Ash and Dawn continued their journey to Jubilife City and Dawn's first Pokémon Contest Ash couldn't help but notice that his traveling companion seemed even more excited than usual; in a way he was just as excited as she was as he'd never been in a big city. He'd stayed on the boat when it stopped at Cinnabar Island on the way to Sinnoh since he didn't want to go out without a Pokémon that would protect him. Normally he would have just thought it had to do with the fact that she was going to make her Contest debut in Jubilife and they were almost there, but she kept counting her money over and over again like it was going to disappear. "Hey, Dawn, why do you keep counting your money? Is there an entrance fee for Pokémon Contests or something?" He asked. It was kind of important for him to know. Entering Pokémon based competitions was absolutely free in Kanto so long as you met the requirements. If things were different in Sinnoh he would be in real trouble when it came time to compete in the Pokémon League.

Dawn shook her head. "It's nothing like that, entering Contests is free as long as you register. I just want to make sure I have enough money to buy a Pokétch." She mist have noted the confusion on his face because she continued. "It's a must have for any Top Coordinator. Don't they have Pokétchs in Kanto?"

"I'm sorry, Dawn, but I've never heard of a Pokétch. They must be a Sinnoh only thin,." Ash said.

"Oh, it's short for Pokémon Watch, they're really useful for Trainers because they have a bunch of cool apps, and like I said, all the Top Coordinators have them. Here, I'll show you a picture of one." Dawn said.

Dawn pulled out a magazine and turned to a certain page before handing it to him. He saw a girl with light blue hair. The magazine said her name was Marina and that she was a Top Coordinator, but Ash wasn't interested in that. Given that he knew it was a watch it didn't take him long to find the Pokétch. He said the first thing that came to his mind. "It's pink."

"They make a blue model for boys, Ash," Dawn said rolling her eyes. Her protest in this case was gentle unlike when he voiced his opinion on other things he considered girly. "I wasn't expecting you to wear a pink watch, Ash, it was just the only picture of a Pokétch that I have on me. I really think you should get one though, it'll probably come in handy at some point."

"Well, you're the expert on Pokétches here, Dawn, if you think I should get one then I don't see any reason not to." Ash said, They continued walking on what the map told them was the route to Jubilife City, just enjoying nature and each other's company. That is until a rather annoying trilling noise reached Ash's ears. He tried to ignore it at first, but it just kept going, his frustration was made all the worse by the fact that Dawn didn't seem at all bothered by the noise. "Okay, what is making that sound?"

His complaint shook Dawn out of her reverie. "Oh, it's just a Starly, we have them all over Sinnoh. Their cries are annoying, but you've grown up hearing them all your life you learn to tune them out I guess." She said,

Ash pulled out his Pokédex so he could look up Starly, it didn't take long. "Starly, the Starling Pokémon. Starly normally travels in a flock, but when alone, it is hard to notice," the robotic voice of Dexter chimed.

"It looks like it's the Sinnoh version of the Pidgey we have back in Kanto," Ash mused.

"This one sounds like it's been separated from its flock, it shouldn't give us any trouble," Dawn said.

"I'm going to catch it!" Ash declared.

"Are you sure you want to try and catch Starly, Ash, it's a Flying-type. If Pikachu was obeying you it wouldn't be a big deal, but Burmy will be at a serious disadvantage. Maybe you should try catching something else first." Dawn said.

"You caught Shinx with Piplup, and you were at a type disadvantage. This isn't any worse than that. Besides, I have to prove to myself that I can do this. You helped me catch Burmy, and I grateful for that, but I need to catch a Pokémon on my own and there's no time like the present."

Dawn nodded. "I understand. Good luck."

"Burmy, come on out!" Ash threw the Pokéball containing the Bagworm Pokémon and released her. She seemed to know why she had been called out and readied herself for battle. "Starly, we challenge you!" That definitely got the Starling Pokémon's attention as it came blasting out from the treeline, eager for a battle. It immediately began flapping its wings, unleashing a powerful gust of wind. Just from the fact that the wind wasn't hurting Burmy he deduced that the move was Whirlwind and not Gust.

Of course while Whirlwind didn't do damage it did have a rather unwelcome side effect in the form of blowing Burmy's cloak away Ash groaned internally as he watched his Pokémon take her mind off the battle at hand in order to reassemble her cloak. _Not again!_ The situation was made all the worse by the fact that Starly was coming in for an actual attack. There was no way Burmy was going to put her cloak back together by the time Starly got within striking range, and she wasn't going to listen to any commands until she had her cloak back.

Ash did the only thing he could think of. He dove towards Burmy, scooping her up in his arms, shielding his Pokémon with his own body. He gritted his teeth against the pain as his arms took the full force of Starly's Wing Attack. Burmy managed to wiggle her way out of his grip, and construct a new cloak while Starly was occupied with attacking him. Hopefully now, they could actually battle Starly.

Starly immediately went back on the offensive by using Quick Attack. The Starling Pokémon charged forward at blinding speeds, a white streak trailing behind it. Ash knew that Burmy was nowhere near fast enough to dodge, but he wasn't about to let her take damage if he could help it.

"Burmy, use Protect!" As ordered. Burmy conjured the green spherical force field, and Starly plowed right into it. The Starling Pokémon seemed dazed from the impact. That didn't really surprise Ash though, he imagined it was a lot like falling from something tall, the sudden stop could do a lot of damage. "Use Tackle, Burmy!" Burmy complied, thrusting her body at Starly, sending it skidding back a few feet.

To the Starling Pokémon's credit, it gathered its wits quickly and was ready for round two. "Ash, look out, I think Starly is getting ready to use Whirlwind again!" Dawn called. He knew that she was probably right, Starly had seen how taking away Burmy's cloak took her mind off the battle. Why wouldn't it use a working tactic twice?

"Use Protect!" Ash ordered the Whirlwind came as expected, but this time Protect shielding Burmy, and her cloak from the strong winds. That was good, it meant that Burmy was still focused on the battle, but they had another problem. Starly was much more mobile than Burmy was by virtue of being a Flying-type so it was going to be difficult to land attacks when the opponent could move in all three dimensions. He would have to come up with something to neutralize Starly's mobility advantage, or they had no chance of winning this battle.

Starly was angling itself for another attack. Ash wracked his brain for anything that could turn this battle around, they'd been lucky so far, but that luck could run out at any moment. It was then that he remembered the battle they'd had with Dawn and Piplup, maybe something like that would work here... Starly came screaming toward Burmy with a Quick Attack. "Burmy, jump on top of Starly!" Ash ordered. Burmy was quick to follow his orders, her sudden weight on its back driving Starly to the ground. "Now use Bug Bite!"

Burmy's fangs glowed with Bug-type energy and she sank them into the nape of Starly's neck. The Starling Pokémon struggled valiantly, but Burmy was simply to heaving to shake off. Not wanting to torture the poor Pokémon Ash threw a Pokéball.

Starly was converted into energy and placed inside the Pokéball. It shook once, twice, three times, but ultimately it stopped shaking and made the deep chiming sound that indicated the Pokémon had been caught. Ash rushed over and excitedly picked up the Pokéball. "I caught a Starly!" He said before calling Burmy back onto her Pokéball. He quickly used his Pokédex to check out his newly caught Starly. He found out that it was male and that it used every move it currently knew in the battle.

"Congratulations, Ash!" Dawn said, putting her had out for a high five that Ash was more than happy to give her. "I'm sorry I doubted you."

"Don't worry about it, Dawn, I said the same kind of things when you battled Shinx." Ash reassured her. "Though this battle has taught me one thing."

"What's that?" Dawn asked.

"I need to teach Burmy to battle without her cloak, her fussiness about it has put us into a tight spot on more than one occasion."

"I can see why you'd want to do that, but it won't be easy. As you've seen, Burmy value their cloaks above all else. Getting her to focus on a battle without one may be near impossible."

"I know that, but the opponents we'll be battling will likely know that too. That's why it's so important that we do this, it's a glaring weakness and overcoming it will give us a serious edge."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"Well, we should get moving, Jubilife City isn't that far away, and you need to register for your first Contest, and I need to register for the Pokémon League."

* * *

The first thing Ash and Dawn did when they arrived in Jubilife City was head to the Pokémon Center. The reasons for this were twofold. The first was to get Ash's newly caught Starly checked out, and the second one was that Pokémon Centers were where you registered for Pokémon Contests and the Pokémon League. After registering for the Sinnoh Contest circuit and setting her Pokémon up with some food Dawn called home on the Pokémon Center's video phone.

It didn't take long for her mother to answer. Johanna smiled when she saw her daughter's face. "Hello Dawn, I see you've made it to Jubilife City. I'm glad you called, I was starting to get worried about you," She said.

"I'm sorry, Mom, I know I should have called sooner, probably after I got my starter in Sandgem Town, but I got a little overexcited. I promise that I'll keep in touch better in the future, but I'm okay, no need to worry," Dawn said sputtering in embarrassment.

"When you say there's no need to worry is exactly when I worry the most," Johanna teased. "So you got your first Pokémon okay?"

"It was quite the adventure actually." Dawn said before recounting how she had met Piplup.

"Oh my, that _does_ sound like quite the adventure. Have you caught any Pokémon yet?"

"Yeah, I caught a Shinx, hold on, I'll call over my Pokémon so you can meet them. They're eating right now." Dawn looked over to see that Shinx was balancing a piece of Pokémon food on her nose in an effort to impress Ash's Pikachu, who seemed entirely disinterested, but then again Pikachu seemed disinterested I just about everything, so that wasn't really a surprise. She wasn't sure how she felt about her Shinx having such an obvious crush on a Pokémon as unruly as Pikachu, but I the end she figured there wasn't much she could do about it. She called Shinx and Piplup over so that she could introduce them to her mom.

"Those are some very nice looking Pokémon you have there, sweetie," Johanna said, "I hope you're remembering everything I taught you about Pokémon care."

"Of course I am, Mom, no need to worry," Dawn replied.

"And what do I do when you tell me not to worry?" Her mother retorted.

"Don't start that," Dawn said with a sigh, "Anyway, I've been training hard with my Pokémon and I've already thought of some really cool ways to show off their moves. It helps that Ash has been helping me train for the battle portion of Contests too."

"Ash?" Johanna asked.

"Oh, that's right, you haven't met Ash yet." Dawn slumped a little, slightly depressed by her own forgetfulness. "Hey, Ash, come over here for a second please. I want you to meet my mom." Ash quickly made his way over to the videophone.

"Hello, you must be Dawn's mom, I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town in the Kanto region." Ash said.

"Hello, Ash, you can call me Johanna. Since you came all the way from Kanto, I would guess that you've been a Trainer for a while, right? I do hope Dawn hasn't caused too much trouble for you."

"Actually no, I'm just starting out, just like Dawn, I came to Sinnoh right away because I heard about all the cool Pokémon that live in this region. Dawn hasn't caused me any trouble at all, actually I owe her a lot. She helped me capture my first Pokémon since my starter doesn't like to listen to me."

"I see, so, Ash, do you want to be a Pokémon Coordinator like Dawn?" Johanna asked.

"Nah, my dream is to win the Pokémon League and become a Pokémon Master," Ash said.

"Interesting, how did you two end up traveling together with such different goals?" Johanna asked.

"Professor Rowan suggested that we stick together since we're both rookies; he thought we'd both be safer that way, and I'm glad he did. Ash and I are learning a lot from each other," Dawn said.

Johanna nodded. "That makes sense. Thank you for looking out for my daughter, Ash."

"It's really no problem, Johanna. Like I said, she's helped me out just as much, if not more," Ash said.

"Well, you should probably call home and let your family know that you're okay too, Ash," Johanna said.

"Yeah, you're probably right, my mom's probably worried sick and waiting by the phone. It was nice meeting you," Ash said. Dawn said a quick goodbye to her mother so Ash could have the videophone to call Pallet Town. It did take long for a brown haired woman that Dawn could only assume was Ash's mother to answer.

"Ash Ketchum, it's about time you called. Do you know how worried I've been? I didn't even know if you made it to Sinnoh in one piece or not." Yeah, that was _definitely_ Ash's mother.

"I'm sorry, Mom, I meant to call you when I got to Sandgem Town, but I got a little distracted. I promise to call more often from now on."

"You'd better, young man," His mother admonished, "Still, to think you made it this far so quickly at the beginning of your journey. Your father would be so proud. You're the apple of his eye you know. I hope you've been remembering to change your-" She stopped suddenly, seemingly noticing Dawn for the first time. "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm embarrassing you in front of your friend."

"Hello, Mrs. Ketchum, I'm Dawn Berlitz from Twinleaf Town here in Sinnoh," Dawn said.

"Hello, Dawn, you can just call me Delia. I take it you're a Pokémon Trainer too?"

"Yes, ma'am. Though I'm more interested in Contest battles than Gyms. My dream is to become a Top Coordinator like my mother. I met Ash in Sandgem Town shortly after I got my first Pokémon. Professor Rowan said we should travel together and we've been having a lot of fun," Dawn said.

"Well thank you for looking after my little boy, Dawn. It's just good to hear from you, Ash. Just don't make me worry like that again." Ash and Delia said there goodbyes and just as he ad Dawn were about to leave another call came in from Pallet Town.

The gray haired man on the other side of the line was one Dawn recognized instantly from television as Professor Oak, he read a lot of Pokémon poetry. "Well, Ash, your mother told me you made it to Jubilife City and I thought I would check in on you; I heard from Professor Rowan that you made it to Sinnoh safely, but you left Sandgem Town before I could get into contact with you. I don't suppose you've had any luck with that Pikachu I gave you?" Oak asked.

"I'm afraid not, Professor, Pikachu is as stubborn as ever, but I'm still trying. I'm sure I'll win him over eventually." Ash said.

"It's good that you haven't given up. Some Pokémon are more difficult than others, but a good Trainer will learn how to deal with any kind of Pokémon," Oak said. "Which reminds me, I bet Gary one million Pokédollars that you would catch a Pokémon before you got to Jubilife City. He had no faith in you, but I did."

Ash smirked. "Well, you can tell Gary to pay up. I've actually caught two Pokémon. Though to be fair I don't know that one of them should really count, since Dawn had to help me because Pikachu won't listen to me," Ash suddenly looked panicked, "Oh, where are my manners? Professor Oak, this is Dawn Berlitz from Twinleaf Town; she's just starting out like me, we met at Professor Rowan's lab. Dawn this is Professor Oak."

"It's an honor to meet you, sir," Dawn said.

"And it's a pleasure to meet you, Dawn. I'm always happy to meet beginning Trainers." Oak said.

"Forgive, me, but you really love Pokémon poetry, don't you?" Dawn asked.

"Why yes, I do," Oak said with a smile.

"Does that mean you know all the Pokémon poets?" Dawn asked.

"Dawn, I don't think you get it, Professor Oak is a real professor, just like Professor Rowan." Ash said.

"Then why do I always see him on TV reciting poetry?" Dawn asked.

"Perhaps I've been spending too much time on my hobby and not enough on my wor,." Oak mused. "At any rate, I'm happy to hear that you're doing so well, Ash, and even happier to hear that you found someone to travel with. I'm sure that you and Dawn will learn a lot from each other. I'm afraid I must go, I have a lot of work to do. It was nice talking to you both."

Now that their phone calls were finally over Ash and Dawn recalled their Pokémon and left the Pokémon Center. They had already reserved rooms, so they had a place to stay, but Dawn was determined that she wasn't going to end this day without a Pokétch. Unfortunately that seemed like it was going to be more difficult than she thought. There were plenty of Pokétch shops in Jubilife, they were a very popular item after all, but no matter where they went they story was the same. There were simply no Pokétches to be had.

After hours of combing the city, Dawn sat down on a bench outside one such shop, with Ash joining her. She knew that he wasn't nearly as invested in getting a Pokétch as she was, so he was much less torn up about the current situation. "It just doesn't make sense. Everyone knows that Pokétches are popular, how can no one in Jubilife not have any to sell?" Dawn asked the air.

"The story we heard from everyone was the same. They just haven't been getting their regular shipments, Dawn, and the shipments they have been getting have been much smaller than normal," Ash said.

"That makes even less sense." Dawn declared. "The Pokétch company is based right here in Jubilife, the stores shouldn't be having any issues getting supplied."

"I guess," Ash said. He seemed distracted. In fact, his eyes seemed to be tracking something.

"What's wrong, Ash?" Dawn asked.

"You see that guy there in the brown coat? He's acting shady, ad I've seen him outside of every Pokétch shop we visited," Ash said. Now that he'd pointed him out to her it wasn't hard for Dawn to find the man in question. Ash was right, there _was_ something shady about him.

"Do you think he know something about the missing Pokétches?" She asked.

"There's only one way to find out," Ash said. He called after the man who only quickened his pace. Well, if that wasn't suspicious Dawn didn't know what was. Ash quickly took off after the man, any attempt to speak to him being flat out ignored. Eventually Ash managed to tackle the man to the ground.

"Do you know anything about the missing Pokétches?" Dawn demanded as Ash let the man up.

"Yes I do, but I didn't steal them, if that's what you're thinking," The man said.

"And why should we believe you?" Ash asked.

"Because I'm a member of the International Police." The man said, pulling a badge out of his coat. "I ignored you because it's part of my mission to avoid unnecessary contact, but now that we're speaknig you may call me by my code name, Looker."

"Alright, Looker, _do_ you know anything about the missing Pokétches?" Dawn asked.

"As it just so happens, I do, and I would be happy to tell two observant young Trainers such as yourselves all about it if you will follow me back to where I'm staying," Looker said. Dawn didn't see much choice, this was the only lead she had on where to get a Pokétch, besides Looker was a police officer, not someone dangerous, and she'd have Ash with her, just in case.

* * *

Looker lead the two Trainers who had cornered him back to the small apartment he was renting here in Jubilife City. He was using it as a base of operations for his investigation into Team Galactic. True, Jubilife was far from a central location in Sinnoh, but it _was_ the information hub of the region, if there was any information to be had about Team Galactic it would pass through here.

"There really isn't much to this place, you would think a member of the international police would be able to afford a better place to stay," the boy, Ash said.

"It's rundown nature is exactly what makes it perfect for me. No one would think to look for a member of the international police in a place like this," Looker said.

"Whatever you sa,." Ash muttered. Looker just ignored the comment.

"Now, I believe you wanted to know where all the Pokétches are going, correct?" He asked.

"That's right, I was really excited to get my Pokétch, but all the shops said they never got their shipments," The girl, Dawn said.

"That doesn't surprise me. The shipments are being hijacked by a group of Pokétch smugglers. You see, Pokétches aren't supposed to be sold outside the Sinnoh region. These smugglers are making a pretty penny by selling them on the black market in other regions. The Pokétch Company has taken steps to try and make their shipment trucks less appealing targets, namely less merchandise per load and random shipment times, but it's really hurting their business," Looker said.

"If you know all of this, why don't you go to the local police so they can help you shut down the smuggling ring?" Dawn asked.

"Stopping the smuggling ring isn't my real mission here in Sinnoh. Revealing my presence to the local authorities could compromise my true mission. If I'm going to stop these Pokétch smugglers then I will need help from less than official sources. That's where you too come in," Looker explained.

"Us?" Ash asked incredulously.

"Yes, I would like you to help me catch these Pokétch smugglers and take the credit for it so that my cover isn't blown," Looker said.

"Of course we want to stop these thieves, but we're just rookie Trainers, wouldn't this be too dangerous for us?" Dawn asked.

"I wouldn't worry about that. I highly doubt that these criminals are skilled Trainers, and I'll be there to watch your back." Looker said.

"I'm up for it, it sounds like it would make great training!" Ash exclaimed.

"That's the spirit!" Looker said.

"Well, I'm not about to let Ash run off on his own, Professor Rowan would kill me," Dawn said.

"Good, it just so happens that I know that a new shipment of Pokétches is being sent out today, and I'm sure our friends will want to steal it," Looker said. A few hours later, Looker, Ash, and Dawn were waiting outside the Pokétch Company headquarters for the truck carrying the new shipment of Pokétches to leave. Once it did, they followed it closely. So when the truck was ambushed by a half dozen Golbat on an alley street they saw the whole thing. Ash moved to stop the hijackers who appeared after the Golbat, but Looker stopped him. "We need to wait until they take the shipment back to their leader. That way we can shut down the whole operation at once. Just send your Starly out to tail the truck, we'll follow at a distance so as to not arouse suspicion."

Ash nodded and did as he was told. The trio continued to follow the criminals as they left Jubilife City via Route 218, heading toward Canalave City. That made sense really, Canalave was a port city, if you wanted to smuggle something out of Sinnoh, that was the place to do it. So he was slightly surprised that the truck stopped long before they actually reached Canalave, a large boat was waiting for them on the coast. _They probably want to avoid port authority._ A man in a fine purple suit stepped off the boat, looking none too pleased, Looker could only assume he was the leader of his little smuggling ring.

"This one better have merchandise, my customers are getting restless," he said.

"Don't worry boss, we checked the back. There's plenty of Pokétches for us to sell to the highest bidder in there," one of his subordinates said.

"Then let's get it cracked open and load them on to the boat," The boss said. "Go, Machamp!" The four armed Superpower Pokémon, grabbed a hold of the steel doors on the back of the truck and ripped them off.

"Now! Give up, International Police!" Looker said, sending out his Croagunk letting it and Ash's Starly rush forward.

"Use Wing Attack!" Ash commanded.

"Poison Jab, Croagunk!" Looker ordered. The two Pokémon rushed Machamp, but it simply caught Ash's Starly in midair and used it as a shield to block Croagunk's Poison Jab.

"What are you just standing around for? We're under attack!" The smuggler boss shouted. His cronies responded by sending out their six Golbats. That effectively took Ash's Starly out of the fight with Machamp since it now had to contest the skies. So it was really down to him Croagunk to take it down.

"Dawn, I want you to use your Pokémon to help Starly." Looker said. The girl nodded.

"Piplup, use Bubble Beam to knock those Golbat out of the sky! Shinx, finish them off with Spark!" She called as she threw their Pokéballs.

Looker couldn't pay much attention to that part of the battle, he had to focus on dealing with the Machamp, which was quite enough to keep his hands full. To be honest, he wasn't even sure if he could win this battle without help.

"Use Karate Chop, Machamp!" The smuggler boss called. Machamp's hands glowed white and it aimed to hit Croagunk with a force that could slice boulders in half.

"Dodge it, Croagunk!" Looker shouted. The Toxic Mouth Pokémon dodged Machamp's attacks gracefully, the larger Fighting type wasn't exactly known for its dexterity. The smuggler boss was getting frustrated, but at the same time, it was clear that Croagunk was, slowing down, he couldn't dodge attacks forever.

"Use Cross Chop!" The smuggler boss ordered. Machamp crossed its once again glowing arms and then brought them down on the tired Croagunk, causing the Toxic Mouth Pokémon to sink into the ground slightly.

"Use Revenge, Croagunk!" Looker called. Croagunk's entire body glowed orange momentarily and then he struck Machamp in the chest with his fist casing the other Pokémon to stumble back a few steps and clutch the offended area in pain. Damage had been doe, but it was clear that Machamp wasn't going to go down any time soon. Looker took the moment to see how Ash and Dawn were doing. Thanks to the combied efforts of their Pokémon they had managed to take down two of the Golbats and do quite a number on the third, but it was obvious that the battle was wearing on them.

The smugglers were pushing Ash and Dawn's Pokémon closer to Machamp. It looked like a this wasn't going to end well for them. That was until a new voice cut into the battle. "Piplup, use Whirlpool." Suddenly a large whirlpool swept up the Smugglers' still active Pokémon, doing damage and knocking them all out. The humans present, as well as Ash, Dawn and Looker's Pokémon turned their attention to where the order had come from to see a brown haired girl in a blue shirt and gray pants about the same age as Ash and Dawn with a Piplup by her side. Looker had seen this girl before in pictures at the Sinnoh Champion, Cynthia's house. "Verity?" He asked.

"A friend of my mother's, I presume?" She asked. "There's no need to thank me. All the noise interrupted my training for the Jubilife Contest. I just wanted it to stop. You might want to get to arresting these guys though." With that Verity and her Piplup left the scene. With their Pokémon out of the picture, arresting the smugglers was merely a formality. After turning them into the local police who promised to keep his involvement in the matter a secret from everyone except his superiors, and making sure that Ash and Dawn were rewarded in the form of free Pokétches from the returned merchandise Looker readied himself for a call from Lance. He was quite certain that his boss would not be happy about this...

* * *

Lance sighed as he listened to Looker's story of the events that had transpired just outside Jubilife City on Route 218. Looker was a good agent, there was no denying that, but he did tend to get a bit sidetracked at times. It didn't help that what had gone down was rather high profile, even if Looker had managed to keep his involvement a secret. "What the hell were you thinking? We sent you to Sinnoh to monitor Team Galactic's activities, not bring down Pokétch smuggling rings. You're incredibly fortunate that you didn't alert your targets to your presence," he said.

"I know my mission sir, but I'm also a member of the International Police, I couldn't just sit and do nothing while a major crime ring was operating in my jurisdiction. I'll take whatever punishment you wish to give me, but I still feel like I did the right thing," Looker said.

"I'm not saying that it was wrong to shut down the smuggling ring. I appreciate your dedication to enforcing the law, Looker, it's what makes you a good officer. So there won't be any punishment, I just ask that in the future you weigh the importance of what you are planning to do before going off mission," The Kanto Champion said.

"I'm sorry to report that I haven't been able to get any information on what Team Galactic is planning to do exactly. I will continue to investigate and give you periodic reports," Looker said.

"I'm sure you will, if the rumors we heard about what Cyrus wants to do are even remotely true, he needs to be stopped. We can't let him meddle with the power of the Creation Trio, the results would be catastrophic, possibly even more catastrophic than what we're trying to prevent. Plus it's likely that we will need to call for the aid of the Creation Trio ourselves in the coming battle."

"I know how important this is, Lance, no one wants us to be ready to face the Ultra Beasts again more than I do. I've seen firsthand the kind of destruction they can cause. Never again." The pain in Looker's eyes was palpable, and Lance could sear that the seasoned lawman was shaking. The threat of the Ultra Beasts had been brought to his attention well after the incident ten years ago had concluded, but he'd heard the stories of what had been lost.

"I've never doubted your resolve. I just wish that Nanu shared your enthusiasm for the mission. It's like pulling teeth getting that man to do anything," Lance said.

"We were all damaged by what happened ten years ago. No one came out the same. This is just Nanu's way of coping with the pain. Try to be patient with him," Looker replied.

Lance nodded. "I understand, but that doesn't make it any less frustrating. We need everyone on top of their game, we have no idea when the Ultra Beasts will be back."

"Speaking of our mission, I just met a couple of rookie Trainers who could be an asset to us down the line. Their names are Ash Ketchum and Dawn Berlitz. They helped me take down that smuggling ring." Berlitz, that name rung a bell, wasn't that the last name of a Sinnoh Top Coordinator, Johanna? If this Dawn was a relative of hers, probably a daughter, she might indeed be worth scouting.

"I trust your judgment, Looker, there are very few people who know about as much about what the Ultra Beasts are capable of as you do. If you think these kids might have what it takes then I'm inclined to believe you. That said, I don't want to send unprepared children into battle. Monitor their progress and if they continue to excel like you think they will we'll recruit them."

"I understand. There's one other thing about the smuggling ring incident I thought you should know: Cynthia's daughter was also there fighting them. I didn't even know she was in the city, she showed up on her own. Do you think we should let Cynthia know?"

Lance turned pale. "Absolutely not! They don't get along and I don't need an angry Sinnoh Champion yelling at me for putting her kid in danger, especially when it's not our fault. So just keep that quiet, understand?"

"Yes sir, I understand completely," Looker said before signing off.

* * *

Sorry for the wait, first it was writer's block, then I had to reset my computer to the factory settings and lost the progress I _did_ have. Not that I'm making excuses, I wish it hadn't taken this long. I will do my best to make sure future chapters come out in a more timely matter. That said, we should probably discuss the changes that took place in this chapter because I feel that transparency about these things is important.

First I'm sure you guys noticed major omissions from our main characters' Pokémon roster. Namely the omission of Dawn's Buneary and Pachirisu, and Ash's Turtwig. The omission of Pachirisu was simply because I already gave Dawn an Electric-type in Shinx. The lack of Buneary is another matter entirely. They only met Dawn's Buneary because Aipom stole Ash's hat and the ensuing events caused Pikachu to be nearly run over by Officer Jenny, no Aipom (and a Pikachu that wouldn't care about the hat at this point) means no Buneary for Dawn, but I've given Shinx a mix of Buneary and Pachirisu's traits to make up for it. The same kind of thinking applies to Ash's Turtwig, the only met it because of a scuffle with Team Rocket, Team Rocket isn't here so no Turtwig. I still gave Ash a Starly because no matter the universe an Ash without the regional bird just seems wrong.

The early meeting of Looker is a simple one to explain. When it comes to Team Galactic stuff I'm following the games instead of the anime for the most part because I feel the games did it better. Plus, it means more interaction with Cynthia, which is a big plus considering it ties closely into what I consider the biggest and likely to be the most controversial change I made this chapter.

The inclusion of Verity from _Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You._ I intend for Verity to be Dawn's main rival throughout Sinnoh. I chose her because she's sort of a mirror of Dawn, which will cause Dawn to develop a lot. Both having famous mothers, Johanna for Dawn, and Cynthia being commonly accepted as Verity's mother. Verity's relationship with Cynthia is much more rocky than Dawn's with Johanna, something that will play into Verity's character arc. Expect their rivalry to be much more antagonistic than the canon one with Zoey.

Speaking of which, Zoey will not appear in this story. That's the controversial part I mentioned, as I know Zoey is popular. I don't hate her by any means, she just doesn't check the boxes for Dawn's rival given where I want to take things. I understand if people hate me for this. Verity's inclusion also spurred one minor change, in order to prevent an over-saturation of the Piplup line Kenny will start with a Chimchar here as Dawn, Kenny, Barry _and_ Verity would all have members of that line..

So I hope you enjoyed the chapter, please leave a review. Even if it is just eviscerating me for removing Zoey or any of the other changes I made. Don't expect any major payoff for the Ultra Beast plot for a long while, Ash and Dawn have a lot of growing to do before they are ready for that. Still, I wanted to show that I have a plan for where this is going.

Also, it is with great sorrow that we must mourn the passing of a certain Charmander in this universe. Time is still marching on in Kanto and without Ash there to save him... Of course that's one of many changes that have come from this course of action. Ash and Dawn have already missed out on meeting characters like Nando because without Team Rocket they didn't have to keep backtracking to meet up with each other like in canon, so they're actually making better travel time here. Of course, I'm not going to wipe away every episode, but taking things like that into account, a lot of fillerish episodes may get cut. Things like Contests will realign us with the canon timeline though.

Also one final note, I'm considering making a collection of side stories that detail what effects Ash's different travel path has had on various characters that he would have interacted with, at least the big ones, rivals, traveling companions etc. Please let me know if this is something you guys would be interested in. It would be its own fic so as not to break up the flow of this one.


	4. Chapter 4: Contest Time

**Humble Beginnings**

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

 **Chapter 4: Contest Time**

Ash stepped out of the Pokémon Center to find Dawn sitting on a bench in the garden behind the building which could be used for impromptu Pokémon battles. He hadn't known her for long to be fair, but he could tell that something was wrong. Ash sat down next to Dawn on the bench. "Are you okay, Dawn?" he asked.

Dawn sighed, but turned to face him. "No, I'm really not, Ash. I was so excited to make my debut as a Pokémon Coordinator at the Jubilife Contest tomorrow, but now I'm so nervous. I'm just not sure I'm going to do very well."

"What brought this on?" Ash asked. In the short time he had known Dawn she'd never been one to doubt herself. Her catchphrase was "No need to worry" after all. The fact that she was so down on herself was _very_ worrying.

"Verity," Dawn said. Ash nodded remembering the Trainer they'd briefly run into the day before when they were helping Looker deal with the Pokétch smugglers. "Her Piplup is so strong, I don't know if I can keep up with Trainers that are that strong. I'm sure there will be other Coordinators at the Contest that will be just as strong, if not stronger."

"You'll do fine, Dawn, everyone has to start somewhere. Besides, you've explained to me that Pokémon Contests aren't really about power. I'm sure it helps, but you said it was more about showing off your Pokémon in beautiful and creative ways, and you're really good at that," Ash assured her.

"Thanks, Ash, I needed that." Dawn said with a smile.

"Of course, we can always do some last minute training for your Contest if that will help you get your confidence up. A little more practice never hurt anyone," Ash said.

"You're probably right. I'm thinking that I'll probably use Piplup for the battle rounds, so it's best if I practice with him for now," Dawn said.

Ash nodded. "I've been meaning to see what Starly can really do, is it alright if I use him?"

"Fighting against a Pokémon that can fly would be good practice. I have no idea what I'll be up against if I make it to the battle rounds. It's a good idea to get practice against all kinds of Pokémon. I don't want to go up against a Flying-type and be helpless because I don't have a plan to deal with their mobility," Dawn said.

"That makes perfect sense to me, Dawn, see you're already thinking like a great Trainer. I don't think you have anything to worry about, but I'm more than happy to help you train. Let's go the the battlefield behind the Pokémon Center," Ash said.

Dawn nodded and the pair of them made their way to the battlefield. "I hope you're ready Ash, because I won't be holding back! Piplup, spotlight!" Dawn threw Piplup's Pokéball and the little Penguin Pokémon appeared with a pop and a flash of white energy. Piplup puffed out his chest in a display of the pride that was typical of his species.

"You know I wouldn't expect anything less of you, Dawn. Starly, I choose you!" The Starling Pokémon made a nearly identical entrance to his opponent. With the two Pokémon ready Ash smirked. "I'll let you take the first move, Dawn."

"Piplup, use Bubble Beam!" Dawn ordered. Her starter Pokémon complied, unleashing a torrent of bubbles toward Starly, who was hovering in the air on the other side of the field.

"Counter that with Whirlwind, Starly!" Ash said. Starly flapped his wings furiously, creating a wall of wind that blew the bubbles back toward the ground, causing them to explode on impact and kicking up a cloud of dust.

"That was very clever, Ash, I've never seen Whirlwind used like that," Dawn said.

"That's just how I do things," Ash said. He knew he had Dawn on the back foot right now, but he'd seen enough of her skill from their previous matches to know not to underestimate her. He had to press his advantage if he wanted to win this battle. Now, Starly, use Wing Attack!" Starly's wings glowed white as he flew toward where Piplup was, though that area was still obscured by dust from the Bubble Beam Ash didn't think Starly would have much trouble finding Piplup.

"Piplup, show them what we've been working on!" Dawn called. That made Ash just a little bit nervous. He had no idea what she was talking about. He didn't expect Dawn to share every detail of her training with him, but he thought he had a good grasp of what Piplup was capable of. Could she bluffing in order to make him second guess his attack?

Ash shook his head to clear it. It didn't matter, the realities of the battle were the same. He'd just have to find out whether this was a ploy the hard way. Starly dove down into the dust cloud intent on doing some damage to Piplup. The dust was clearing now, so Ash could see the results of his attack. Starly had been stopped short because Piplup had used Peck on his underbelly. The attack wouldn't have done much damage because Peck was Flying-type like Starly, but it was enough to stop him. The odd thing was that Piplup's beak, still glowing with Flying-type energy was quite a bit longer than it should have been.

This time it was Dawn's turn to smirk. "You're not the only one who can think outside the box, Ash. Piplup and I have been working on storing up the power of Peck. It lengthens Piplup's beak. Giving him extra reach. It's a great way to show off that move. Now, Piplup, Bubble Beam!" Piplup's beak shrank back to it's normal size, but before Starly could react he was being blasted by a stream of bubbles. Ash grit his teeth, not liking the fact that his Pokémon had taken such a clean hit, but at least the force of it had pushed Starly back, putting some distance between him and Piplup.

"Well played, Dawn, but don't think that Starly and I are that easy to take down," Ash said, "Go in for Wing Attack one more time!" Once again Starly's wings glowed white and he charged toward Piplup, although the Starling Pokémon was moving faster than before, intent on actually doing damage this time.

"You don't really think that's going to work, do you, Ash?" Dawn asked, sounding slightly insulted at such a straightforward attack being used against her. "Blast Starly with Bubble Beam again!" Piplup was more than happy to oblige.

"Dodge that with Quick Attack, Starly, and finish the attack!" Ash ordered. Starly nodded, picking up speed, white streak forming behind it, his wings still glowing with the power from Wing Attack. The extra speed made it child's play for Starly to dodge the Bubble Beam, but something strange happened as he did so. Starly disappeared for a second and reappeared behind Piplup before striking the Water-type.

"What was _that?"_ Dawn asked as Piplup skidded across the dirt as a result of the impact.

"I wasn't expecting that either," Ash admitted, "From the looks of things combining Wing Attack and Quick Attack created Aerial Ace. That's actually pretty cool." The battle would have continued if Nurse Joy hadn't stepped out of the Pokémon Center.

"Dawn Berlitz, a package just arrived for you," she said.

"You should probably go see what it is," Ash said. He was a little bummed that they wouldn't be finishing their training battle, but since Starly had learned a new move he couldn't complain _too_ much.

"I have a pretty good idea what it is," Dawn said, "my mom was going to send me a dress for the Contest. Still, I'd better go try it on and let her know I got it."

* * *

It didn't take long for Dawn to change into her new dress, it was mostly pink with a white collar and red bows, she'd even done up her hair like she was going to wear it in the Contest. She'd had Ash call her mother while she changed so she could show off how she looked in the new dress. "Round and round we go," Dawn said in a sing-song voice as she made her way to the videophone. For his part Ash just looked confused.

"So, Dawn, are you wearing a dress because this is your first Contest and you want to impress the judges?" He asked.

Dawn just sighed. "Oh, how naive can you be, Ash? For your information Coordinators in the Sinnoh region _always_ dress up for Contests. It's part of the spectacle after all, she then turned toward the phone screen where her mother was watching the exchange, "Thanks, Mom, I just love my new dress."

"I'm glad you like it, honey, but I think you need to take another look in the box, there should have been a choker in there," Johanna said.

"I didn't see any choker," Dawn said.

"I think you're looking for this, a voice said. It was a voice Dawn recognized instantly. After all it belonged to the person she'd been having nightmares about since they'd helped Looker deal with those Pokétch smugglers, and sure enough she was holding a choker that went perfectly with Dawn's outfit and carrying her Piplup in her arms, "I found this on the floor of the dressing room." She tossed it at Dawn with a look of disgust on her face,

Dawn quickly put the choker on. "See, I have the choker now, so you have nothing to worry about," she said.

"The times when you tell me not to worry are when I worry the most," Johanna retorted. That classic response deflated Dawn a bit, but she knew she had something else to take care of before she could continue this conversation.

"Thank you for returning the choker, Verity," she said.

"Don't thank me, I wasn't doing you a favor. I just don't want you to have even the slightest excuse when I crush you in the Contest tomorrow, Princess," Verity said before storming off.

"What's her problem. You haven't done anything to deserve that kind of treatment, Dawn," Ash mused.

"I wish I knew..." Dawn said.

"You said her name was Verity?" Johanna's voice brought Ash and Dawn back to reality.

"Yeah, do you know something about her, Mom?" Dawn asked.

"Maybe, I can't be sure. Dawn, the last thing you need to be in your first Contest is absent-minded, especially if that girl is who I think she is. You need to stay focused.

"I know, Mom, I've got everything, under control, no need to worry, Dawn said with a smile.

"And what do I do the most when you tell me not to worry?" Johanna asked. Dawn sighed, she'd really grown to hate that question. It was almost as bad as being called Dee-Dee, at least she knew her mother wasn't being malicious and was just trying to keep her focused, unlike people like Kenny.

"Don't worry, I'll be here to cheer Dawn on every step of the way," Ash said, "She's a really good Trainer, I'm sure she's going to do great."

"Thank you, Ash, it makes me feel a lot better knowing that Dawn isn't out there alone. I think Professor Rowan knew what he was doing when he suggested you two travel together," Johanna said.

Dawn thought about it for a moment, and she had to agree. She and Ash had already learned a lot from each other and their journey had just started. She didn't even want to think about how lonely she'd feel if she were traveling alone with just her Pokémon to keep her company. Dawn would be the first to tell you that she was a _very_ social person, she honestly didn't know if she could survive on the absolute bare minimum of human interaction, and she didn't really want to find out.

"Thanks again for the dress, Mom," she said with a smile.

"It's not a problem at all, dear. Good luck in the Contest tomorrow. I'll be watching," Johanna said before hanging up.

* * *

Ash woke up to the sound of a Pokéball popping open. It took him a moment to register what exactly had happened because his mind was still hazy with sleep, and even longer to realize that it was one of his Pokémon leaving their Pokéball of their own accord because the room was pitch black. Considering that Pokémon weren't really supposed to do that, that only left one suspect: Pikachu. Ash fumbled around, trying to find Pikachu's Pokéball in the darkness, but by the time he'd found it the quick little mouse had already run out of the room and into the hall beyond.

His first thought was that Pikachu was trying to run away from him. A more cynical part of his brain almost welcomed that possibility before he quashed it. His starter Pokémon may be a handful, possibly more of a handful than a beginning Trainer could handle, but he wasn't about to give up on Pikachu, or let Pikachu give up on him. Without thinking, or even putting his shoes back on Ash charged after Pikachu, determined to not let his Pokémon get away. Nurse Joy would probably yell at him for running around the Pokémon Center barefoot, but at this point he didn't really care.

The trouble with chasing Pikachu was that the little rat was deceptively quick. Ash barely caught glimpses of a little yellow blur to point him in the right direction. It really was a pity that Pikachu refused to have anything to do with him; that speed would be an amazing asset in battle. Not that he just wanted to use Pikachu for battle of course, he wanted to be friends with all his Pokémon first and foremost, but the Trainer and battle aficionado in him couldn't help but admire such obvious raw talent.

When he finally caught up with his starter Pokémon, Ah found Pikachu zipping around the battlefield behind the Pokémon Center. It was almost like the little guy was... training. None of this made much sense to Ash, Pikachu hand outright refused to take part in any of the battles or training Ash and his other Pokémon had been a part of, and he barely acknowledged that Ash existed. So why would he be training on his own. Ash needed answers, but he knew he wasn't going to get them from Pikachu, so there was only one person he could turn to: Professor Oak.

He left Pikachu to his own devices, it was better than being zapped for interrupting him. However as he turned to walk to the videophone Ash stole one last glance at his starter Pokémon and found him gazing longingly at a point on the horizon, something Pikachu seemed to do often when he was out of his Pokéball. Ash could only assume that Pikachu was thinking about the place he had lived before Professor Oak got a hold of him. Sighing, he made his way to the videophone and dialed the number for Professor Oak's lap. It took a few moments for the kindly professor to answer, likely because of the late hour.

He still looked half asleep on the other end of the line. "Ash," he asked, half yawning his words, "what do you need that caused you to call me so late?" To his credit, Oak didn't seem at all bothered about having his sleep disturbed.

"I'm sorry, Professor, I was just hoping you could tell me more about my Pikachu, he's acting kind of strange," Ash said.

"I'm more than happy to tell you what I know, Ash, but I must ask what brought this on," Oak said.

"I caught Pikachu escaping his Pokéball and running off to go train on his own. He barely even acknowledges me so I don't know why he would train on his own. He also keeps staring off into the horizon. Since I got him at your lab I was hoping you would know more about this, Professor," Ash said.

Oak sighed. "You're right. Ash, there _is_ more to your Pikachu than meets the eye. I first encountered him a few years ago on an expedition to a newly discovered region. The Pokémon there were... different than the ones you're familiar with; they were for lack a better term more human. They had towns, used money."

"And my Pikachu was from this region?" Ash asked. If Pikachu was from a place where Pokémon acted more like people that would explain a lot of his behavior.

Oak nodded. "I won't bore you with the details, but there was an incident in that region and Pikachu was severely injured. He was once a very kindhearted Pokémon, but ever since I brought him to Kanto he's been the Pikachu that you know. I think it's because of the loss of his partner."

"Partner, you mean like, a Trainer?" Ash asked.

"No, Pikachu was quite close with a Chikorita, exactly how close I couldn't begin to guess."

"Okay, I can understand that, Pikachu lost an important friend because of humans, so he doesn't like us in general. Could we send him back to that region?" Ash asked.

Oak shook his head sadly. "That region is... lost to us. We can never go back, and that's a good thing in my estimation."

"Okay, but why is Pikachu training by himself?" Ash asked.

"The incident caused Pikachu to lose a lot of his strength, basically resetting him. He's likely trying to regain his old strength," Oak said.

"Thank you for answering my questions, Professor," Ash said.

"I'm more than happy to help, my boy," Oak said before hanging up. Ash sighed, now he understood why Pikachu was so distant, but that wouldn't make bridging the gap any easier.

* * *

"Big need to worry!" Dawn frantically fought her rebellious hair with a brush. The Contest was going to start soon, and if she couldn't even get her hair under control she had no chance of winning. She was surprised when someone approached her from behind, and even more surprised when she realized who it was. "Verity?" Dawn could barely recognize the other Coordinator who had let her brown hair out of her ponytail, and was wearing an elegant and simple silver gown, though it seemed to be of lesser quality than what Dawn had received from her mother.

"I take it this is your first Contest?" Verity asked. Dawn was surprised to find that the other girl's voice lacked the condescension that had oozed from it in their previous encounter.

"It's that obvious, huh? Dawn, feeling herself deflate a little. If her inexperience was this obvious, that did _not_ bode well for her chances in the Contest.

Verity chuckled slightly and sat down next to Dawn. "Here, let me help you with that," she said before taking the hairbrush from Dawn. With a clearly calm and practiced hand Verity was able to get her hair under control quickly.

Dawn was grateful for the help of course, but something about this didn't sit right with her. "Not that I don't appreciate the help," she said about as diplomatically as she could manage, "but _why_ are you helping me exactly? I'm your competition, and I was under the impression that you didn't like me very much."

"Oh, make no mistake, I don't like you at all, Princess. It's like I said before, I just don't want you to have any excuses when I beat you. That's provided you even get out of the appeal round of course," Verity put on a _very_ irritating smirk.

"And I suppose you're just so much better than me!" Dawn snapped.

"For your information, Princess, I won my very first Contest, and this is my second," Verity said. That made Dawn hesitate for just a moment. She'd known that Verity was a talented Coordinator, that much had been obvious just from watching her Piplup, but to win your debut Contest was no easy task. True, that was what she was planning to do today, but deep down she could acknowledge just how unlikely a prospect that was. Still, she couldn't let Verity have the last word.

"Look, I don't know what your problem with me is, but I never did anything to you, so please just stop," Dawn said.

"My problem with you is that you've got mommy holding your hand, Princess; she's even picking out your clothes for you. You'll never amount to anything like that, even if you are the daughter of the famed Johanna Berlitz. On that stage, family ties mean nothing, it all comes down to your personal skill, and from what I've seen you don't have much at all. I have ties like that too, but I had to work for everything I have."

"I know I have to become a Top Coordinator based on my skills and Pokémon and I. My mom helping me out with dresses doesn't make me any less of a Trainer. I'm going to win this Contest and show that you need to take me seriously," Dawn declared.

"You're welcome to try, but there's no way I'll ever lose to a pampered princess like you. I will say this, though: I hope you at least make it past the appeal round, it would be much more satisfying to put you in your place myself, Princess," Verity said before walking away.

Dawn made her way out of the dressing room and found Ash waiting for her. "Is everything alright, Dawn, you don't look so good. I was getting worried about you, the Contest is going to start any time," Ash said. Dawn figured that her friend must have noticed the frustration on her face.

"I'm okay, Ash, I just ran into Verity. She's just as tough a Coordinator as I thought she'd be. She already has a ribbon and this is only her second Contest," Dawn explained.

"I wouldn't worry about that too much, Dawn. It could have just been beginner's luck," Ash said.

"I don't think so, Ash, you saw how strong her Piplup was. She's not someone I can take lightly."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right," he admitted. The waiting room fell silent as the Contest proper started. Once the host and panel of judges were introduced it was time for the Coordinators to make their appeals. "Our first Coordinator taking part in the Jubilife Contest is Verity from Celestic Town!" Marian, the official announcer for Sinnoh Pokémon Contests said. Verity gave a slight bow and pulled out a Pokéball inside a Ball Capsule as was standard for Sinnoh Contests.

"It's showtime, Vulpix!"Verity threw the Pokéball into the air and in addition to the popping noise and white light that usually accompanied a Pokéball opening there was also a plume of white smoke, no doubt the result of a seal that she'd put on the Ball Capsule. The small fox-like Pokémon was snow white with ice blue eyes.

"That's weird," Ash said, "We have Vulpix back in Kanto, but they don't look like that."

"Oh, well this is a surprise. Verity's sent out the Ice-type variant of Vulpix that is only found in the exotic region of Alola! This isn't something we see everyday," Marian's commentary answered the unspoken question that was no doubt on Ash's lips. With that mystery solved Dawn turned her attention back to the stage. Though she was curious how a Sinnoh native who had just started her journey like Verity had managed to catch a Pokémon from a region as far away as Alola, but that was a question for another time.

"Use Mist, Vulpix!" Verity ordered. The Alolan Vulpix opened up its mouth and spewed forth a thick white cloud. "Now use Ice Shard!" Dawn could see the blue silhouette of Vulpix's tails in the mist. It was a beautiful display, of that their could be no dispute, but as the icy projectiles were fired she had to wonder if Verity had made a mistake. A good Coordinator could do a lot with ice, but with the combination of moves she'd used meant that the shards of ice were basically just shadows. Then Verity spoke again. "Use Dazzling Gleam!" The Alolan Vulpix became shrouded in rainbow light, the refraction from the mist and the ice shards creating a mixture of white and rainbow light and as the mist started to clear Vulpix sat in the center shimmering.

Dawn's heart sank because the appeal was so similar to what she had planned with Shinx, but there wasn't much to do besides go forward and hope for the best.

After what felt like an eternity it was finally her turn. Dawn took a deep breath as she stepped on stage and threw Shinx's Pokéball into the air. "Shinx, spotlight!" The ball opened with a pop and Shinx appeared with streaks of lightning coming off of her fur thanks to the seal Dawn had put on the Ball Capsule. She pulled out a spray bottle and wet Shinx' fur. "Use Charge, Shinx!" Shinx began to gather electricity into herself. Her damp coat causing her to have a rainbow aura instead of the yellow one this move would typically give her. Now, use Spark!"

Shinx ran forward showing off her power, now boosted by Charge. As she ran water droplets flew off her fur, casting beads of rainbow light, just like the night Dawn had caught her. The effect was not quite as striking thanks to the stage lights, but it still got the job done. Dawn blocked out the commentary, just trying to focus on the performance. She didn't breathe again until it was announced that she'd made it into the battle rounds.

* * *

Ash sat in his seat, as close to the front row as he could managed in the packed Contest Hall. The upcoming battle would be the last in the Contest and he was ready to cheer his hardest for Dawn, and she was going to need it because her opponent in the finals was Verity. He had to give Dawn credit for one thing though, she was right about Coordinators using moves in ways he'd never thought of; he'd have to keep watching her Contests to pick up on new tricks.

Piplup, Spotlight!" Dawn called sending her Starter out for the battle.

"It's showtime, Piplup!" Verity sent out her own Piplup, mirroring Dawn's choice.

"We have a Piplup mirror match, this should be quite interesting!" Marian the host said with her usual exuberance, "There are five minutes on the clock, begin!" Ash was worried for Dawn, she'd done really well so far, but mirror matches like this were tricky things, and Verity was a strong Trainer. It would take every trick she had to pull this one out.

"Use Bubble Beam," Both Coordinators called out at the same time. Both Piplup fired large streams of bubbles from there mouths. The attacks collided at center stage, scattering water droplets everywhere, it looked like the two of them were evenly matched, at least when it came to that particular attack, Ash did his best to ignore Marian's commentary as the woman seemed to take pride in stating the obvious.

"Switch to Hydro Pump!" Verity ordered. Her Piplup switched from bubbles to a torrent of water that overpowered the Bubble Beam that Dawn's Piplup was using and made contact, dropping Dawn's points slightly.

Ash wasn't too worried, that Hydro Pump would have done negligible damage, Dawn could still bounce back from this. "Now, use Drill Peck!" Verity's Piplup jumped up into the air, its beak glowing with Flying-type energy as it barreled for Dawn's Piplup, spinning like a drill as it did so.

"Go, Piplup, counter it with Peck, use it just like we practiced," Dawn ordered. Now her Piplup's beak was also glowing with Flying-type energy, and his beak elongated just like it had in their practice battle. This afforded the attack the range it needed to hit the opponent first, stopping the Drill Peck in its tracks. As a result Verity's points took a hit.

"I've never seen Peck used like that before," Verity said in surprise.

"You're not the only one with surprises, Verity," Dawn said. Even from this close it was hard to tell, but Ash could have sworn there was a small smile on her lips.

"One good move won't beat me, Princess," Verity shot back, "Use Hydro Pump, Piplup!" Once again a powerful torrent of water sprang forth from her Piplup's mouth.

"Use Bubble Beam on the floor," Dawn called. Her Piplup did has he was ordered, completely trusting his Trainer. Ash had no doubt the little Pokémon was confused about the order, even Ash couldn't see the logic behind this move. However, once the instructions were carried out the reason for them became apparent. The force of the Bubble Beam hitting the stage floor propelled Dawn's Piplup upward causing the Hydro Pump to pass harmlessly under him, and dropping Verity's points just a little bit more.

"Clever, but not clever enough. Use Whirlpool, Piplup!" Verity ordered. Her Piplup complied, conjuring a large whirlpool above its beak and tossing it at Dawn's Piplup, trapping him. Dawn's points began to drop steadily as the whirlpool did constant damage to Piplup, and with the clock ticking down Ash was starting to get worried that his friend wouldn't win this Contest after all.

"Use Bide!" Dawn called. Ash smiled, he should have known not to count Dawn out so easily. She'd turned the damage Piplup was taking from Verity's attack into an asset and the points reflected that. Of course, from the look on Verity's face she knew how much trouble she was in if Bide hit.

"Use Ice Beam to create a wall," she said. Her Piplup fired a bright white beam of Ice-type energy from its mouth that did just that; just as it finished Dawn's Piplup flashed white and unleashed the energy he'd been storing up with Bide. The explosion tore the whirlpool apart and destroyed the newly built ice wall, sending shards flying in all directions. However the ice wall had protected Verity's Piplup from the brunt of the blast, costing Dawn some points.

Time was _really_ ticking down now, there would only be enough time for a few more moves. This thing was going to go down to the wire. "Whirlpool, one more time, Piplup," Verity called. Her Piplup once again did as it was told, and Ash wasn't sure how Dawn was going to get out of this one. There wasn't enough time left on the clock to use Bide again.

"Ride that whirlpool, Piplup!" Dawn called. Piplup managed to hop up on top of the whirlpool and keep his balance, riding it like a surfer would ride a wave. It was pretty unorthodox, but Ash had to give her credit. The judges did too, docking a few points from Verity's score.

"Two can play at that game, Piplup," Verity said. Her Piplup also hopped up on to the whirlpool costing Dawn some points of her own. "Now, use Drill Peck!" Verity's Piplup once again launched itself like a drill towards Dawn's.

"Use Peck, Piplup!" Dawn ordered. Piplup's beak elongated with Flying-type energy one last time, but because of the close quarters of the whirlpool he wasn't able to head off the Drill Peck this time. So it essentially became a fencing match on top of the whirlpool in the final seconds. After a particularly powerful clash both Piplup went flying off the whirlpool. Ash's hearth sank as Verity's landed on its feet while Dawn's crashed to the ground. The board said it all, by the tiniest of margins Verity had won the Contest.

After the awarding of the Jubilife Ribbon Ash rushed up to Dawn. "You know, Dawn, Verity's a pretty tough Trainer, and you almost had her. You don't have anything to be ashamed of," he assured her.

"I know, Ash," she said, "and there are plenty more Contests. Most Coordinators don't do this well their first time out. I have a lot to be proud of." She then turned to Verity who was standing nearby. "Congratulations, Verity, that was a great battle, I hope we get to do it again sometime." She extended a hand for Verity to shake.

Verity didn't take the hand. "I'll admit you have talent," she said, "but I told you that I wouldn't lose to someone like you, Princess, and I never will." With that Verity turned and left.

* * *

Sorry this took so long, medical problems that I won't bore you with. I thought I'd just take some time to explain my reasoning for being a Pearlshipper. I think the biggest reason is the dynamic between Ash and Dawn, at the end of the day the two of them are equals. Yes, Ash was sort of a mentor to Dawn like he was to May, especially in the beginning, but he ended up learning just as much from her as she did him. A lot of his best battle strategies were inspired by things Dawn did, like the counter shield. Plus they're just so comfortable around each other, they just click.

In this fic they are on even more equal footing and are growing together from the start. Honestly I think Ash will benefit from Dawn's more friendly and encouraging personality, let's be honest Misty wasn't exactly the most supportive person in Ash's formative days as a Trainer.

Yeah, Ash's start has been rougher because of the lack of the Spearow incident, but in the end I think he'll come out better for it. Dawn is still Dawn and she's learning just as much from Ash, especially in being unorthodox, which will be a great help to her in her future Contest career. There is a long term plan in place, longer than most people expect, I imagine, and I have a few twists you probably won't see coming planned, but those are quite some time away.

Now since I know people will want me to address this, the origins of Ash's Pikachu. It's my personal head canon that Pikachu was the protagonist of a Mystery Dungeon game, specifically Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky. Pikachu always acted more human than other Pokémon. This will play a minor role in the story going forward. I have an outline for the story of how Pikachu ended up in Professor Oak's possession that I could flesh out into its own fic if people are interested in that.


End file.
